Heart of a Dragon
by V for Voldemort
Summary: What if the Resurrection Stone was actually a heart of hearts belonging to a baby dragon that never even got the chance to hatch. What if following the battle of Hogwarts the little being decides Harry is the only person who can help him get back home. What if there was a catch? And of course, where would Harry be if Hermione didn't come along for the ride? Pairings to be revealed!
1. The Stone

Published 27/06/15

Chapter 1

The Stone

The sky above the great hall was clear and glittered with stars, each one twinkling down on Harry with happiness he was far too exhausted to feel. Mere hours ago Voldemort had been vanquished and Harry had taken himself back to Gryffindor tower, intent on sleeping for days. It seemed however, that sleep was not on the cards, and when Ginny had joined him half hour later, the problem had only gotten worse. He did not resent the redheads presence, he loved Ginny dearly, but right now she had lost her brother and she needed a support Harry simply could not give. When Ginny had started to cry, creating tear stains on his shirt Harry felt only the urge to flee.

And so he had, waiting until Ginny had fallen asleep he had left the dorms and quietly made his way to where he stood now, staring down at the ashes of his foe, still piled in the centre of the great hall.

'It hardly seems real does it?'

Harry spun round, surprised to hear the voice he knew so well emanating from the darkness. Hermione came forward, her own eyes as haggard looking as Harry's own. She laughed, a dry, rather painful sound as she stood beside him, both turning back to look at the mound of ash.

Slowly Harry felt Hermione's hand slide into his, but when he felt something bump against his leg, he looked down and spotted the now familiar beaded bag.

Noticing Harry's line of sight Hermione snarled, moments before a dry sob escaped her mouth 'I keep thinking we have to keep moving,' she whispered, 'I'm almost scared of letting go of this stupid bag, as if putting it down will cause some death eater to pop up and murder me in my sleep, crazy right? Do you know where I've been for the last five hours?'

Harry frowned, worry starting to seep into his bones as his friend seemed to get more frantic, 'Where Hermione?' he asked with trepidation, but nothing could have prepared him for the shock of her next words.

The bushy haired girl grimaced, 'Raiding Malfoy Manor.'

Harry felt his jaw drop, but he managed to choke out, 'How?' in a small, wheezy voice.

Hermione shrugged, 'Ron and I followed you up to the dorms not long after you did. We went to sleep in Ron's bed but I had a nightmare about Bellatrix… and Malfoy Manor. Ron was snoring so I couldn't sleep with him and I didn't want to sleep alone. I… I thought that if I could just, I don't know, face the place now that everything was over the nightmares would go away. So I went to the headmasters office and floo called. No one answered so I just went through, no one was there, the wards were down.' Here she took a breath, slow and deep to calm the shaking that had spread through her body, 'I never made it to where Bellatrix… I never made it to the dining room, I couldn't. I found the library instead, thought I could, I don't know, bolster my courage. I started looking over the shelves for something to read, and I just… Did you know Professor Dumbledore taught me how to copy large amounts of books at the end of fourth year. He even taught me how to bypass all the copyright charms and any curses on the books in the restricted section. I have the whole Hogwarts library in this purse. When I saw the books in Malfoy Manor, I just couldn't help myself.'

Harry shook his head and enveloped his friend in his arms as she sobbed into his shoulder, it was some minuets later before both could calm down.

It was then, as Harry pulled back from his tear stained friend, that something caught Harry's eye. With slow movements, Harry bent down and, using the tip of his wand, rolled the lightly glowing, purple, pebble sized gem out of the ashes.

'What is it?' he asked, more than a little afraid of something found in Voldemort's would be corpse.

Hermione frowned, swishing her wand and levitating the pebble up in front of her. With a pulse of light the stone glowed even brighter, sending out a pulse of magic that crashed over the two like a wave 'Did you feel that?' Hermione asked in awe, her eyes wide as her hand rose as if to touch the odd stone. With a strangled shout, Harry's own hand shot forward to intercept hers, only for both their palms to collide round the gem, encasing it between their hands at the same moment.

A buzzing sound started to emanate round the room, the light from the gem glowing so bright that it shone through their very hands, rays of light shooting out from between their fingers.

With a bang the doors of the great hall opened to reveal countless wizards and witches who had felt the wave of magic sweep through the castle. Hermione and Harry paid them no mind however, they could concentrate on nothing but the feeling of pins and needles consuming their body, numbing them and causing excruciating pain all within the same breath.

As the pain started to become too much a feeling of weightlessness started to overtake them and the Great hall dissolved from their view, colours and indistinct sounds taking their place. It was then, before her astonished eyes Hermione watched as purple crystals started to grow over Harry's hand; with a panicked shout he tried to pull away, but no amount of strength could dislodge his hand and before long his whole body was encased in crystal, frozen in shock inside his new prison.

It was only moments later that the feeling of weightlessness started to change, gravity started to reassert itself and Hermione felt herself falling, no flying through the air. With frantic eyes she watched as the colours around her started to change to sky and land, and then she and Harry were not alone in their flight, for there was a stone, a great blue stone flying on the same trajectory right beside them. A loud rumble started to emanate from the flying stone, a flash of light almost like lightning traversing the distance between it and a crystalized Harry. It struck him with a crack like breaking crystal, like a landslide, reverberating through the air and entering into Hermione, through their joined hands. With one last shout of pain her eyes shut and she lost consciousness.

 _The small dragon sighed in annoyance as he moved inside his egg. He was itching to escape the confines of his prison for days now, but the soft but firm hissing voice of King Dragon Father or Queen Dragon Mother stopped him every time he tried to break through. As his restlessness once again reached it's peak, their combined voices once again halted his movement._

 ** _Not yet my son,_** _his father's voice hissed,_ _ **These times are not safe, this land is not safe enough for one so precious as you, you are our future and we cannot risk you falling into the greedy hands of that would be king of men and dragon.**_

 _The little dragon sighed, but allowed King Dragon Father to once again quite his unease._

 _A rumbling laugh echoed and reverberated his egg as Queen Dragon Mother nuzzled him with her snout,_ _ **You are defiantly your fathers son, my little princeling, so impatient to enter the world and torture your poor mothers nerves to shreds with worry over your rashness.**_

 _The feeling of amusement soon left the little dragons mind however, chased away by the panicked sound of another familiar voice, Elder Dragon Sister spoke of the ones to wish him helm, she said they were coming and there was little the other wild dragons could do when they had so many heart of hearts at their beck and call._

 ** _So it is time_** _, said King Dragon Father solemnly,_ _ **My son hear me now, you are our last hope, the last hope for the wild dragons. When the time is right, when peace rules, land sea and sky, return here and find your brethren, we love you son.**_

 ** _Be safe until you return to us, we pray to the stars you will,_** _Queen Dragon mothers voice was strained, and the little dragon felt hot tears fall on his prison._

 _A huge boom shook all around him, and Dragon Sister shrieked,_ _ **Father please, Galbatorix is here, you must send him now or never!**_

 ** _We shall meet you in the stars son,_** _was the last he heard Queen Dragon Mother speak, for in the next second heat bloomed all around him, and the little dragon felt his egg sink into the molten rock King Dragon Fathers flames created beneath him. Another harder shell of diamond formed around him, before he felt a jolt as he was thrown high, high into the freezing air, faster than even King Dragon Father had ever flown._

 _It was as he felt the outer protection of the diamond shell shatter in the cold that he started to worry, and it was when the cold started to crack his real shell that the pain started and he retreated to his heart of hearts. He still felt the pain of his small body freezing, but it was muted, and eventually the numbness took over._

 _When he felt gravity once again pull him to land, he knew instinctively this was not his home, not his land, but he was so thankful for the heat on his heat of hearts as he fell to ground that he did not care. When finally he landed, the little dragon felt the primitive minds of the animals surrounding him snuff out, and slowly all over the land life died. With no one there to see his weakness, the little dragon allowed his anguish to seep out, calling to his kin with silent wails, only to give way to a deep slumber. For millennium he lay there, slowly gaining power as he soaked in the magic of the suns rays, feeling as life returned to the land around him and evolved into something far more intelligent, until one day a magician picked him from his resting place._

 _He did not respond to the magicians probes, only locking away all but a tiny fraction of his collected power. But that tiny fraction was enough for the magician. Using his own powers, he moulded the energy he felt from the heart of hearts, calling on the power all wild dragons possessed to communicate with their ancestors in the stars and magically cut a symbol into the dragons heart of hearts._

 _Using his new possession the magical called again and again on the powers of the stone to speak with his dead wife, until one day the powers of the stone were not enough to satisfy his need to be with her, and he took his own life. The small dragon thought that with the death of the magician his suffering would be over, and for a time it was. He was passed down from magician to magician, idly searching for something, but not truly knowing what he was looking for. Until one day he felt an invasion of his sanctuary, an evil presence that tried to push him out, but only succeeded in driving him further into his heart of hearts, abandoning the surface to the presence._

 _For a time the little dragon knew nothing more of the world. The surface, where he could gaze out was taken up by the Presence and in truth he felt pity for the frail thing, mad as it was and missing the rest of it's soul. Very little could helm him, and so the dragon let it be. When one day the deadened surface of his heart of hearts was cracked and the Presence obliterated, he once again rose to the surface , slowly but surly healing the damage the Presence had caused to his heart of hearts and gazed out at the youngling that wore him on his wrinkly blackened hand._

 _When he met the Scarred Youngling, when human fingers closed around his heart of hearts in the Land of Black Trees and the Scarred Youngling called upon his own parents with a desperation the little dragon had felt only in his own soul, he knew he had found what he was looking for. When the Scarred Youngling left him, he thought his heart of hearts would crack right then, but luck was on his side, and the Snake Man, to whom the Presence had once belonged, picked him up in interest at the strange, if somewhat weak magic the little dragon allowed his heart of hearts to emit._

 _He had bided his time, waiting for the Snake man to fall to the Scarred, and then, when the Snake Man fell to his foe in the Cave of Carved Rock , he called out to the Scarred Youngling, nudging him from sleep and guiding him to where his heart of hearts lay forgotten in the ash. It was chance alone that brought the Wise Youngling there also, but the little dragon could not choose who to take and who to leave when both Younglings touched his heart of hearts at the same time… so he took them both._

 ** _Where am I,_** _Harry asked, a feeling of nothingness surrounding him._

 ** _In our mind,_** _came the reply. Harry tried to be afraid at the reply from the unknown sourse, truly he did but the calm surrounding him was impenetrable, and all he could do was drift._

 ** _Our Mind?_** _He questioned softly, only for images and thoughts, thousands of thoughts and feelings and_ memories _to flood his consciousness. Dragons flying high in the sky, feeding off wild deer, sleeping, mating, loving, hating, happiness, sadness; all this and more until Harry could take no more of it._

 ** _Who are you?_**

 ** _I am you, you are me… I needed your help…_** _More feelings followed, at once more vivid and yet vague. The feeling of comfort, love, brilliant happiness from Father, Mother, siblings. Their fear, terror at what was to befall them._

 ** _Why is there only feeling and words, why no pictures?_**

 ** _I… I never left my egg, I never saw the world I was to hatch into…_**

 ** _I am sorry, you died then?_**

 ** _No, I retreated, into my heart of hearts,_** _more memories followed._

 ** _I thought you did not have proper memories?_** _Despite his odd predicament Harry was intrigued by the strange being._

 ** _They are not mine but my ancestors, I think your people call us…dragons. We pass on our memories to our children._**

 ** _Dragons?_** _Harry asked in a faint voice,_ _ **I'm having a conversation with a dragon.**_

 _The being hesitated,_ _ **I do not understand, you are a dragon too. That is why we are here.…We…you and I… are now one, Scared Youngling…or at least we will be one very soon. The merge is almost complete, when we hatch we shall be one being, one dragon.**_

 _Panic in full bloom, Harry felt his mind lash out into the nothingness, desperately trying to break from the strange prison he found himself in,_ _ **Hatch, what do you mean hatch?**_

 ** _As I said, we are now one. You saw my earliest memories Young One, you have seen my life, experienced it as if it was your own. As I have done with yours. This conversation will be the last we have as separate beings._**

 ** _I don't understand!_** _Harry exclaimed in a desperate, angry voice._ _ **Why me? Why would you take me from my home, just when everything was over? When I had a chance to live the life I always wanted, why would you take that from me?**_

 _The beings mind seemed to unfurl from Harry slightly, hurt and shock radiating from it,_ _ **You… you were my only way home…**_ _The being trailed off, as if searching for words,_ _ **I was stuck in your world with no way back to my own. I know not how I found myself in your world. I had no body, no way to move for myself, but because I had never walked before, I did not understand what I needed to find in order to return. When I connected to your mind in the forest I found your soul sang in harmony with mine, that our two souls were one in the same. I had been searching for so long, for something I did not truly know, then I found you, I knew you were the answer. You were a part of my soul, and you had a body, something I needed. When you touched my heart of hearts again, I felt the magic rising within me, I had to use it then and there or risk loosing the ability to wield it, to go home.**_

 _At the beings words, Harry felt all the overwhelming, burning feelings within him calm; Home. That one simple word that encompassed so much, brought up so many feelings of loss. Harry could never deny someone, anyone the chance to return home, even at his own expense. After all, despite the Weasley's welcoming him into their family as if he had always been there, the truth of the matter was he hadn't. Harry had no home; he had grown up with no family, even the house his parents had lived in was now a monument to Voldermort's defeat. He was an orphan, just like the being he was now conversing with, the only difference was that the being had somewhere it wanted to be, somewhere it had a connection to, a home._

 ** _So…_** _Harry said tentatively,_ _ **You were the Resurrection stone?**_

 ** _Is that what I was called?_** _The being seemed to find the name funny, and a feeling, almost like a childs giggle passed over Harry's consciousness,_ _ **What a strange name!**_ _it declared, giggling again._

 _If Harry could have frowned, could have formed his facial features into something resembling trepidation and caution, he would have,_ _ **Forgive me for saying this, he said carefully, trying not to hurt the beings beelings again, but… while you seem to, um… know a lot of words, you seem rather… childlike.**_

 _The being did not answer straight away, as if it was trying to find the right word, the right way to convey what it wanted to say. When it did answer, the words were slow and deliberate, like a child concentrating very hard._ _ **When I retreated into my heart of hearts my… emotional development was halted. While I learned was able to observe and learn of the world, in a way I am still a hatchling, I am not capable of feeling complex emotions. I suppose you may think of me as a very intelligent child.**_

 _Harry nodded, or at least, signified that he understood with a mental gesture to the being,_ _ **So, what now?**_ _Harry asked wearily._

 ** _Now, we hatch…_**

 ** _DUN DUN DUN!... So yeah, no idea where this story is going, or if it will go anywhere... Might upload more might not, let me know what you think either way!_**


	2. The Fall

Published 01/07/15

Chapter 2

The Fall

Brom Holcombsson had not been expecting his day to explode the way it had, with someone falling through his roof in a blaze of sunset flames, purples, reds, blues, and oranges, still swirling together around the young girl now lying in the centre of his home, curled around what appeared to be a _dragon egg_. He had tried many times within the last few hours to reach the girl, but the fire still raged around the girl in a ferocious dance that lashed out at Brom every time he tried to get within five foot of her.

From what he could tell the flames were not harming her, on the contrary, when she had fallen, bloody and still into his house Brom had feared for her life. Her limbs twisted at unnatural angles, her breathing shallow and uneven, he had not even noticed the flames at first as he rushed to help her. Now, while blood and grime still clung to every inch of her clothes, skin and hair, her limbs had slowly fallen and cracked back into place, every cut had faded to faint white lines and every bruise looked to be weeks, not hours old. She was lying peacefully in her nest of flames, completely oblivious to the world around her.

Brom may have been more worried for the girl if he thought the vulnerabilities of a human body applied to her, but from what he could see, she was far from human. Translucent, iridescent scales were spread over the backs of her hands, on her cheeks and around her hairline. Talon like nails tipped her fingers, the fangs peaking out between her lips and the tips of her ears more pointed and elongated than even an elf. Her hair was a mass of deep mahogany curls interspurced with golds, silvers and reds. The whole effect created an almost mystical beauty to the girl, one that Brom could compare only to some of the elves that transformed their own features with magic. This was the extent of the differences Brom could see, for the rest of her body was covered by strange clothing Brom had never seen before. However if he could guess, from the odd bulges under the cloth, spines of some type ran down her back.

For hours Brom sat and waited for the girl to awaken, but to no avail, she only slept on, clutching the egg tighter and tighter until a loud crack terrified Brom into thinking the egg had broken under the pressure. He was however, utterly astonished to realize that the egg had not broken, but started to hatch. Small pieces of shell started to fall away from the top of the egg, forming a small hole through which a scaled head, shimmering all the shades of twilight peeped out. With further cracking sounds, larger pieces of the shell fell away and a pair of odd scaly chicken wing like appendages stuck out from it's back, soft fuzzy sunset feathers poking out at odd angles. With one final push the rest of it's scaly body emerged and the pieces of sunset shell fell to the floor. The cat-sized dragon peered round the small house with wide slitted eyes in a shade of green that Brom could not place even in the Ancient Language. It took but a second for the new being to notice him watching and immediately any innocent wonder it showed was gone, replaced with a snarling ferocious looking wild animal, crouching over the girl ready to pounce at a moments notice.

With slow movements Brom backed away, his hands outstretched in a placating manner, sending projecting calming feelings at the still snarling dragon. It's large eyes drooped, calming slightly; but in the next moment it was shaking it's head, mental shields equivalent to the Beor Mountains in impenetrability snapping into place. Narrowing it's eyes and with an almost deafening roar, the furious dragon pounced on Brom's chest, knocking them both to the floor with tiny, sharp, pointed teeth locked round a soft human neck.

 ** _How dare you try to influence me human, give me one good reason why I should not rip out your jugular where you lie!_** A surprisingly deep and angry male voice shouted in his head, causing Brom to collapse even further onto the ground in shock.

'You can speak?' Brom managed to choke out, only for the fangs to dig deeper into his neck in warning.

 ** _I am waiting human!_** Was the only, rather ominous reply he received.

'I was…I was not trying to influence you… _Arghh!'_ The sudden feeling of blood seeping down the side of his neck made Brom wince and instinctually try to move away from the pain.

 ** _Stop moving human! Do you wish for death?_**

'…No,' Brom hesitated only a moment before giving his answer, but it appeared to be a moment too long, as the dragon's teeth unclenched slightly and some of his swirling fury stilled.

Minuets passed in this manner, the dragon's mind once again spinning into a flurry before he said, in very deliberate even tones, **_Let me into your mind human._**

Brom could not help the snort of amusement that escaped at the order, and he winced as the teeth cut deeper still into his neck, 'And if I don't?' he asked carefully.

 ** _Then I will_** **definitely** ** _remove your jugular_** **,** was the calm reply.

'What would your rider think of that?' Brom challenged, 'Surly she would not approve of such an action on an unarmed man?'

The dragon seemed to hesitate then, but in moments replied, **_She would be unhappy with me, it is true. However as she is not in fact my Rider, and you are currently an unknown, possible threat, I think she would not be mad at me for long… Now you have stalled me long enough that if you had called for aid it would already be here, and if you had nothing to hide you would have let me in. Therefor I can only conclude that you are not to be trusted, and I do not need an untrustworthy acquaintance at my back. I will give you to the count of three to reconsider before I kill you, One…_** Brom felt the teeth once again tighten around his neck, getting a far firmer grip than it had previously. Still he hesitated to let the dragon in, What, if the dragon belonged to the king? But then, the king would not have let something so precious out of his sight. **_Two…_** And surly any agent of the king would know who Brom was, it was not as if he had changed much since he'd been away from things… **_Thr- There now, was that so hard?_** The dragon taunted as Brom suddenly opened his mind for the dragons perusal.

Faster than lightning pictures flashed through Broms mind. From his earliest memory to his most vivid; each one was taken out, shaken like a sheet to reveal what lay beneath, prodded like a wild animal to see if it would react, twisted and turned until it was looked at from every angle, then very gently refolded and replaced just as it had been. The dragon paused and looked longer at some; his memory of Saphira first hatching for him in front of hundreds of other riders was examined for marks and inconsistencies many times over; her death by contrast, was barely given a chance to play out before it was put aside. His first fleeting glimpse of Selena was looked at with curiosity, even his memories of stealing the blue dragon egg and the formation of the Varden, buried in the deepest corner of his mind was found and inspected. Only the memories locked and tangled in Oaths of Secrecy in the Achient Language were safe from the Dragon, though unlike all those before him he was aware of them and made a very good attempt at untangling what they concealed. On finding the memory of his son however, the dragon gave an abrupt, almost desperate wail and as suddenly as he had entered Brom's mind, was simply… gone, from both his mind and his neck.

As Brom shook his head, checking all his thoughts were as they should be, he peered round the room and found the Dragon curled up in the crook of the girls arm, head hovering above her face as he looked at her longingly.

As Brom moved to rise from the floor, the dragon turned to look at him, and opening it's mouth said, in a voice rough with emotion and pain, 'You are a fool, Brom Holcombsson. In Saphiera you had one of the few people you truly loved and losing her to death almost broke you, I understand that. But when fate gave you a chance to heal, gave you a son, you turned away from him and allowed your heart to harden and in so doing denied not only yourself but possibly your son a chance at happiness one can only find in the arms of a parent.'

Brom stood in shook as he looked at the dragon before him in wonder. He had never known a dragon who could talk out loud. Was this a secret the dragons had kept all this time, or was this gift unique to this particularly strange hatchling? Shaking off his shock, Brom felt his shoulders slump as he replied, 'I could not…' he trailed off, 'Garrow is more than capable of looking after Eragon as his own… I was never meant to be a father.'

The dragon shook his head, 'Believe this from someone who has lost his parents twice over, no matter how good a parent this Garrow is to your Eragon, blood sings and it reaches out to those in harmony with it. Your son will always wonder who you are… why you are not there and question his own worth because of it. Whether you were meant to be a father or not, your child has a right to know you.'

Brom opened his mouth many times to try and answer the dragon, but every time he did so no sound emerged. Eventually, sat in a chair beside the girl still encircled by flames, the sound of a dragon humming a tune he did not know, spirited him away into a nothingness he had not reached in a long time.

Eventually, as the sky visible through the new hole in Broms roof lightened, the eyes of the girl on fire started to flutter open. With a small nonsensical groan, she turned to get away from the light and snuggled further into the warmth that was all around her. From somewhere beside her, Harry's voice, hesitant and worried, called her name, and opening her eyes to look at her friend…Hermione let out a loud scream.

Sat beside her, face almost nose to nose with her own, was a dragon.

The dragon that once called himself Harry let out a sigh as his human friend squawked like a hatchling pushed from the nest for the first time. Unfortunately Brom had already been awake even before her first shriek, and was looking at the scene with no little amount of curiosity. It really was a good thing he had spent the last few hours constructing mental shields around his friends mind before she woke up; because considering how loud her mind was shouting inside the shields Brom would have picked everything he needed from her mind within minuets, possibly seconds. Though the little dragon trusted the older man to an extent, he had no inclination to tell him his life history, he was a rather private dragon. Yes he could just imagine how that would go, _'Yes Mr dragon rider, Half of my soul is human from another world, the other half is a unborn dragons heart of hearts that first crashed to earth sixty-five million years ago and caused the extinction of the dinosaurs. Yes and it just so happens that my heart of hearts still has all that magic it soaked up while it was sunbathing all that time. Ha, not likely!'_

'Hermione!' The dragon shouted, shocking the hysterical witch for long enough for him to continue, 'I am sorry for waking you up so abruptly, I know this must be a shock, talking to an actual dragon as apposed to an egg…' here he gave her as meaningful a look as his new features could manage, hoping to convey his need for her to play along.

Luckly for him, his friend was known as the brightest witch of her age for a reason, and she quickly looked around to spot Brom, 'Oh, hello,' she said in a weak voice. Looking back at the dragon she continued, 'I'm sorry, you were just so close to my face.' Turning to Brom she asked, 'Um do you mind if we step outside for a moment, I don't mean to be rude but I have a few questions for…' here she looked back at Harry with a questioning look before continuing, 'A few questions for my… friend here.'

Brom gave the Dragon an amused look and motioned to the door, 'By all means, talk all you want.'

'Thank you,' the dragon said politely, leading the way out of the house and into the surrounding woods.

When he felt they were a good distance from the house and it's nosey occupant and said, 'Sorry Hermione, this may hurt,' before giving a hard tug and pulling her mind into his.

 ** _Harry?_**

 ** _Over here Hermione_** _, came the reply as light flared to life all around to reveal the Gryffindor common room. Turning round, Hermione found, to her great relief, a very human looking Harry stood beside the couches in front of the fire. With a rather hysterical sob, Hermione launched herself at her best friend and wrapped her arms round him in a tight hug._

 ** _I thought you were dead; you changed into that odd crystal and…_** _she trailed off._ _ **What's happening Harry?**_ _She asked, pulling back to look her friend in the eye._

 _And so Harry told her. Told her of the dragons heart of hearts and it's journey through their world. He told of crash landing and merging his soul with that of the dragons. Finally he told her everything he had learned from the former riders mind after hatching. The history of Alagaësia, the Varden, Broms son and the hidden, impenetrable places in his mind were talked of. Every thought, every memory was looked at again and again, every possibility and outcome argued over until they could no longer talk in straight lines._

 ** _So the long and short of it is that we are, for the foreseeable future stuck in an alternate dimension where they use a completely different type of magic than the wizarding world, and no idea how to get back home. We've also landed smack bang in the middle of another civil war between a tyrant king and his subjects. You've merged your soul with a dragon and are currently stuck as a dragon. You're suddenly a master of both occulumacy and legamancy because half your soul spent millions of years hiding from the world. And to top it all off the only other person we know is a past his prime rider who was one of the main people to start this rebellion in the first place? Only you Harry could get us into a bind like this just by going for a walk instead of sleeping._**

 _Harry nodded grimly,_ _ **There is one more thing…**_

 _Hermione groaned,_ _ **What now? You know, sometimes Harry, being your friend is a little more trouble than it's worth.**_

 _Harry grinned, not able to take his friend seriously for the mischievous look in her eye, but sobered quickly as he conjured a full-length mirror for his friend to look into._

 ** _FUCK!_** _Hermione ripped her jeans and top off, freezing at what she saw. All over her shoulders and down her back opalescent scales shone and twinkled, growing larger and eventually into spines down the centre of her back. The scales extended down her legs and covered her feet, only the front of her thighs were bare, and even they had a slight sheen to them. Her forearms and the backs of her hands were summarily covered, though there were no actual spines, the claw like nails on her fingers more than made up for it. Scales a little bigger than a two pence piece circled around her hairline like an odd sort of hairband; framing elongated pointed ears and pronounced cheekbones covered in scales no bigger than a little fingernail._

 ** _What the hell happened?_** _Hermione whispered, slitted green eyes that were an exact match to Harry's peering back from the mirror as she turned this way and that in order to get a better look; pulling back her lips in order to see the two sets of pointed teeth on either side of her central incisors._

 ** _The only possibility I can think of a the moment is that because we were falling from the sky your body had to change in order to survive the impact._**

 _Surprised at the thought, Hermione turned to face her friend, only to find the small dragon she had met sitting on the couch instead._

 ** _Harry?_** _She asked in confusion._

 _The little dragon shook his head,_ _ **You have to understand, this is me now Hermione. I am a dragon, with all the instincts and well… body parts that go with it. Is this something you are willing to except?**_

 _Hermione felt tears forming as she rushed to the small being. Sitting beside him she wrapped her arms around him and lifted his spiky body into a hug. She had but a moment of surprise that it was so comfortable to hold him against her bare skin… well bare scales, before she was hugging her changeling friend tighter and whispering,_ _ **Oh Harry of course I can except that, I love you.**_

 _As Harry relaxed in her arms, pain like very intense pins and needles engulfed her hand, and she cried out in shock as she turned to look at what had caused it. There, in the centre of her palm was what looked eerily like a certain lightening bolt scar that was still visible on the side of her friends forehead, only miniscule purple scales replaced scar tissue._

 _Hermione looked at her palm in confusion and was just about to ask Harry exactly what it was when her friends head shot forward and sniffed, looking at the purple scales in the equivalent of dragon wonder._

 ** _Harry, what does it mean?_**

 _Harry shook his head back and forth,_ _ **I don't understand.**_ _Looking up to Hermione he continued,_ _ **This type of marking is what dragons call the Scales of Alliance. It is what the elves first based their spells to bond with the dragons on. It signifies a friendship so deep that all boundaries are broken.**_ _Turning a scaled head to look at his back, he indicated a small patch of opalescent scales in the shape of a lightening bolt._ _ **We are linked.**_

 _Hermione frowned and looked back at her own hand,_ _ **Is that such a bad thing?**_

 _Harry quickly turned back to her with a laughing dragonish smirk,_ _ **Of course not Hermione, it is simply that this kind of bond has only previously formed between**_ **wild dragons** ** _. You are the first human to ever have such a mark. The rider marks are different, it forms a dependency between the barers that is almost a hinderance at times. The shape of the mark is also always the same, a spiked spiral like a curling dragon. The shape of the Scales of Alliance reflect what bonded the two bearers of the mark in friendship._**

 _At her friends explination Hermione could not help the rather hysterical laugh that escaped,_ _ **Well it's not as if I'm that human any more, I mean look at me Harry,**_ _she exclaimed, turning so that the scales all over her body shimmered and shined._ _ **And as for the mark itself, well fighting the troll in our first year was what formed our friendship, and all our adventures fighting Voldemort afterward were what made it into what it is now. Personally I can think of nothing more fitting than you scar to symbolize that.**_

 _A rumbling sound issued from Harry's throat, signifying his agreement with her theory._

 _Hermione smiled and looking round said,_ _ **Well then, I think we should be getting back. We need to find a way home and I know you may not like it, but we need to speak to… Brom was it… yes, anyway we may need his help. He knows the magic here and we don't. He could know… Harry what's wrong?**_ _As Hermione looked back at Harry, she was surprised to find the dragon staring at his feet, a large frown wrinkling the scales around his face._

 ** _Harry?_** _Hermione asked again, tentatively walking back to him and sitting at his side,_ _ **Harry please look at me, what's wrong?**_

 _The little dragon looked up at her and just stared for a moment before his shoulders slumped and he said quietly,_ _ **You may wish to go back Hermione, and I shall do all in my power to help you, but I won't be going with you. When I merged with the dragon's soul every part of my being did the same, I hardly feel like Harry any longer. I am a wild dragon I could not live within the confines of the Wizarding world. I could not be treated at the dragons of our world are, caged and thought of as little more than monsters.**_

 ** _Harry I..._** _Hermione trailed off, sighing as she thought through her friend's words._ _ **If your not Harry any more, then who are you?**_

 _The little dragons eyes widened and he looked at Hermione in confusion,_ _ **I… don't know…**_

 _Hermione sighed and pulled the small dragon into her arms,_ _ **That's ok, we'll figure it out.**_

Pushing Hermione back into her own mind, the little dragon watched as his friend came back to herself, shaking her head and looking around.

'Well that was interesting,' she said, turning and lifting the little dragon into her arms.

'May I ask why you're carrying me,' the dragon asked.

Hermione shrugged as she walked on, 'I'm not really sure, I just like carrying you, you fit well in my arms.'

The little dragon nodded but otherwise said nothing as Hermione pushed the door to Brom's house open and stepped inside.

'So you've finally decided to return?' said the man as he eyed the pair critically.

'I was not aware there was a time limit to how long we may speak,' the dragon growled in annoyance, jumping from Hermione's arms onto the roughly carved table in the centre of the room. Hermione looked from Brom to the dragon for a moment before taking one of the seats beside the table.

Brom chuckled as he sat down in another of the chairs, 'Pease dragon, I meant nothing by it.'

'Then there was no cause for you to voice it human,' was the curt irritable reply.

Brom stared at the dragon for a moment longer, before turning towards Hermione and nodding, 'Names Brom Holcombsson, though I'm sure your friend here told you that. What I want to know, is how you ended up crashing through my roof.'

The dragon watched as Hermione's eyes widened and she looked to him in question, **What should I say?**

 **Say whatever you like, but I think the fewer who know of our origins the better,** the dragon replied, though he doubted she realized she had projected her thoughts at him. His suspicions were confirmed when her eyes widened in shock. **Do not worry, I have shielded your mind, he cannot read it.**

Nodding, Hermione turned back to Brom and shrugged, 'My grandfather gave it to me. I recently found out what the egg was and I knew the only thing that kept it from the kings notice was my families ignorance of what it was. I knew I couldn't keep it, so I went into my grandfathers things and found a spell to take it to a safe place.'

Standing up, Hermione went over to where the egg's shell pieces lay. Picking up the pieces she absentmindedly tried to fit it back together. 'Unfortunately the spell brought me with it. I vaguely remember flying through the air with the egg in my hands, but that's about it. Next thing I know I'm waking up here.'

Brom looked dubiously at Hermione for a moment, 'You know magic?'

Hermione shook her head, 'I do not know your magic. The magic of my people is different to yours. I think that's why the spell went so wrong. When I found out what the egg was, I admit I panicked and just cast the spell. I think the magic of the dragons and my own magic reacted strangely to one another.'

Brom nodded, and in a sure tone he said, 'Well I suppose your spell worked. This hut is probably one of the safest places outside of the Varden or Du Weldenvarden for any dragon not loyal to the mad king. I suppose the question now, is what do you want to do. You are of course welcome to go home, wherever that is, but I get the feeling home is a little out of your reach right now.'

Hermione hesitated for a moment, but then asked, 'What do you think we should do?'

Brom looked to the little dragon, a furious scowl on his face as he rubbed his chin in contemplation, 'To own the truth, I'm not too sure. If you were a rider pair, I'd train the both of you as much as I could, then take you to the Elves to complete the training. But you're a wild dragon if ever I've seen one,' he said nodding to the little dragon, then turned to Hermione he continued, 'and you're more dragon than human in the first place. Are all your people like you?'

Hermione smiled, 'No, I'm rather unique, even amongst them.'

Brom scowled, 'Well there you see, I don't rightly know what to do. The Varden need a Rider to unite them, but they would get rather scared of a wild dragon I think.'

'You don't have to do anything,' the little dragon said, 'We, Hermione and I are more than capable of looking after ourselves. I have looked through your mind human, and there is nothing that can help Hermione on her way home. The elves may be able to help us; they have a deeper understanding of magic and more access to information than you do.'

Brom nodded, 'The elves can almost certainly help.'

The dragon frowned, 'You are being most, obliging in letting us do as we wish.'

Brom chuckled, 'As you said, you can look after yourselves and I have no interest in forcing you to do anything. It would probably backfire spectacularly anyway, as you do not seem like the type to follow blindly.'

A shadow crossed over the dragons face, 'No,' he said in a low voice, 'Not any more.'

For minuets silence reigned within the small house. It was broken by Brom clearing his throat and saying, 'Well then, I think our way forward is clear; I'll take you to the elves. We could reach the edge of Du Weldenvarden within the month.'

'A month?' Hermione asked in dismay.

Brom nodded, rising from his chair and pulling a scroll down from one of the many shelves situated around the house. Unrolling it and spreading the paper out reviled a map of Alagaësia, 'Carvahall is surrounded on three sides by the mountains of the Spine, it's in a sort of valley,' he said indicating the top left of the map. 'In order to reach the elven woods we need to either go over the mountains, a journey I would advise against if the weather continues as it has, or we follow the Anora river round and cut across to the woods.'

'Then that's what we'll do,' Hermione agreed, 'As soon as it's dark we'll set off.'

Brom gave a humourless snort, 'We'd need at least a week to gather provisions for such a trip; and to be honest, I'd prefer to make such a journey on horseback, it's far quicker.'

Hermione frowned, 'I wish I could apparate.'

'Apparate?' Brom asked

Realizing her mistake, Hermione blushed but explained, 'Apparation is a form of transportation for my people. It's where we visualize where we want to go, disappearing from our current location and reappear in the place we want to go. Unfortunately you have to have been to the place first in order to go there again.'

Brom's eyes were wide as he stared at Hermione, 'How does the effort of such an action not kill you?'

Hermione shrugged, 'It hardly takes any energy at all really, here let me show you.'

Flicking her wand from the holster on her wrist, Hermione twisted round and disappeared with crack, only to reappear on the other side of the table.

'See? Easy,' said Hermione, though a little frown creased between her eyes as she continued, 'though it's strange, it meant to go a little father from the table than this.' She turned back to Brom, only to find him gaping at her in astonishment.

After a moment of disbelieving silence, Brom looked to the little dragon and said, 'You know this is extraordinary, surly you understand the significance of this?'

The dragon only nodded, but at Hermione's hard and annoyed stare he said, 'Magic here works differently than with your people Hermione. Here magic and the body are intimately connected. The magic takes as much energy from you to do the task magically as it would to do it the muggle way. It's the reason why elves are so powerful; their bodies are far stronger than a human's, they have enhanced speed and strength, as well as enhanced senses. It means simple tasks are far less of a strain on their magic than a human.' The dragon concluded, adding silently for only Hermione, **Truthfully, now that I think about it that's possibly why your body changed in the first place. In this realm or dimension or whatever you wish to call it, magic works so differently that in order to obey it's laws your body had to change. My theory is that now your body reflects the power of your core.**

Hermione frowned, 'Like what?'

The dragon grinned and looked up, 'For example if you were to fix the roof of this house, that is now starting to get rather chilly I might add, then you would feel the effects of the spell as if you had just been up on the roof for hours thatching.'

'Hermione too up in surprise, 'Oh,' she exclaimed, ' Do you know I hadn't even noticed the cold until you pointed it out, how strange.'

Then pointing her wand into the air she flicked it twice and watched with satisfaction as the roof knit itself back together. Turning back to Brom she found him still gaping at her and looked to the little dragon in worry, 'Is he alright?'

Her words seemed to shock Brom out of his stupor and getting up, he made his way over to Hermione, 'May I?' he asked, holding his hand over hers. At her nod he placed his hand over hers and closed his eyes.

'What is he doing?' Hermione asked in a whisper as her hand started to grow hot where it was in contact with Broms.

'Reading your magic, I think,' the dragon replied, 'It will be interesting to see what he finds.'

Before Hermione could ask anything more, Brom's eyes opened and he let out a slow breath, all the time staring at Hermione in wonder.

'It's as if you have a-' here he broke off and looked at the little dragon now leaning into Hermione as she stroked her hand over his spines.

Cocking his head in confusion for a moment, the little dragon took a moment to understand, but when he did he exclaimed, 'Oh, you mean a Heart of Hearts?' At Broms nod he asked, 'Do Oaths bind all Riders not to speak of such things?'

Once again Brom nodded and he asked, 'Can we trust the girl with such knowledge?'

Hermione raised an unimpressed eyebrow at the question, but the little dragon was quick to answer before she could get too offended, 'Knowledge and Hermione are one in the same human. Any knowledge you impart shall be safe.' Turning to Hermione he said 'A heart of hearts is the dragon equivalent of a magical core, a gem like stone located next to the actual heart in the chest. If we wish we may expel it from our chest and once out of the body it will start to absorb energy from the sun. If the dragon should die the dragons consciousness goes into the heart of hearts. Now while the amount of power a heart of hearts can absorb is infinite, the problem is that the dragon consciousness cannot use the power, they are essentially trapped within the heart of hearts.'

'That sounds horrible,' Hermione shuddered.

'It is… rather lonely…' the small dragon whispered, 'I do not think I will ever remove my own, I…'

Sensing the dragon was remembering his own time in his heart of hearts Hermione placed her hand on his back again and held him close. To chase away the depressing topic she asked, "And this heart of hearts is like my magical core? I'm sorry but I don't think if I stuck a finger down my throat and gagged my magical core would come up with my lunch.'

Amusement thrummed through the mental like connecting the two and the dragon said humorously , "No, but it is a source of power that is unrelated to your physical body. For most of the people of this land the strongest warrior is the one with the strongest body, but for you it would not matter if you were stick thin and couldn't even lift a twig, you'd still have a magical core with power.'

Brom had been mostly silent throughout the small exchange, but the dragon was not so obtuse as to not notice the rider was watching them both very carefully, 'Is this type of magic common with your people?' he asked in a low voice.

Hermione nodded, 'Yes, although the amount of power an individual has varies from person to person.'

'And how is it that I have not heard of beings with such power?'

Hermione shrugged, 'We are not a particularly trusting or social people.'

'No,' Brom agreed, eyes narrowing slightly, 'It would seem not.'

Feeling the tension between the two legs rise the dragon asked, 'Does it really matter if you have heard of Hermione's people or not Human?' he asked in an irritated voice.

Brom broke eye contact with Hermione and looked to the little dragon. After a moment of contemplative silence he said, ' No, I suppose not.'

'Good, then shall we talk of more urgent things, such as the fact that we need to gather provisions for a rather long journey?'

With little protest Brom agreed that they should start planning, and so the rest of the day and some time into the night was spent planning or arguing the route they should take. While Brom didn't want to chance going over the Spine, once he mentioned the route would take a week or more off their journey Hermione was adamant that that was the route they were taking. She eventually convinced Brom to her way of thinking by showing him her beaded bag, which could hold all their provisions and still be light as a feather. Showing him the tent she, Harry and Ron had used while hunting horcruxes sealed the deal, as well as reminding the witch what she was trying to achieve, a way home.

In the early hours of the next morning Brom found himself sitting at his table contemplating the orange tent that had been set up in the corner of his home. A few days ago, if someone had asked, Brom would have said that while he did not consider himself an expert, he knew enough of magic to say what should and shouldn't be possible by a human in anything but extreme cases where dragons were normally involved. However the girl sleeping in the tent and the dragon sleeping in the entry went beyond extreme; one was a dragon with the ability to talk and the other looked somewhere between a dragon and a human, with the ability to manipulate magic as if it were water in a cup.

He was not sure if he could trust them, the girls story of how she came to be in his home in particular didn't ring true. However the dragon was one of only three in existence and very few were privileged to know of the third. It was his hope that by taking them to the elves they could find out more about the pair. If they were found worthy he was hoping to convince the girl to stay and help fight Galbatorix; if they were not trustworthy… he hoped the elves would be able to contain the power the girl possessed and nullify the threat.

It galled him greatly that the little dragon was able to defeat him so easily, though the new being did surprise him. The dragon was another mystery altogether; Brom couldn't place it, but there was something very different, almost familiar about the scaly creature. Not to mention that he was far too intelligent for a normal hatchling, and when they had been speaking of the Eldunarí-'

His thoughts were cut off as a muffled sob and a loud scuffling issued from the tent before the girl came rushing out and threw herself down next to the dragon, frantically shaking and calling for him to wake.

'What's going on?' Brom asked irritably when the dragon yawned and turned its head to look at it's friend.

The girl looked from the dragon to Brom with large round fearful eyes, 'There's another dragons egg and I think it's in the spine!'

Thanks for all the Reviews and Favorites!


	3. The Birth

EEEEEEPPPPPPPP, can you tell that was a really girly squeel? Thankyou all for your reviews!

I would just like to take a moment before you all rush off to read the next chapter, to reply and clarify something one of the reviewers asked me. It's the only question a reviewer asked that will not be specifically answered in the story and I thought some other readers could benefit by the answer too. So this is for Goundry and anyone else that was wondering-

Hermione's changes are complete. Her body changed only as much as it needed to in order to comply with the rules of magic in Alagaësia. As dragons are the only species in Alagaësia with something like a magical core her body had to adapt some parts of her in order for her to retain her ability to use magic as a witch. If she had completely changed into a dragon she would be unable to use magic, like all other dragons. Harry Dragon (who I really need to give a name to at some point, any suggestions please feel free to post), as Snape always liked to complain, will be the exception to this rule in some ways. Duh, like you didn't see that coming! ;-)

So on with the show...

Updated 5/07/15

Chapter 3

The Birth

'What do you mean there's another egg?' Brom asked, an edge of panic entering his voice.

Hermione looked to him then, 'I told you I had a vague memory of flying through the air. I remembered… I remembered all of it. I was falling, falling and flying so fast I didn't think I'd live. I had the…the egg in my hand and I saw a blue light flash past me, it was, it was faster than me but I saw it, a large round blue stone, flying…falling, I think it was falling when I saw it, it was falling down… I was…' Hermione sighed and put her fingers to the scales at her hairline, scratching her talons along them and into her hair, 'The stone fell somewhere below me… I think… I blacked out as it passed me…but I was flying over a forest at the time.'

Brom looked to the dragon and said, 'If you allow me into her memory I can look to see if it is the Spine or another forest she speaks of. If it is the Spine I can see where the egg may have fallen.'

The dragon gave the old rider an unimpressed look before an image of a landscape was shoved into his head.

'I do not trust you not to see something you shouldn't,' stated the dragon, before padding over and planting himself in his friends lap where she promptly began to scratch his scales.

Brom huffed but turned his attention inward to look at the image the dragon had presented to him. Mountain after mountain stretched out before him, the valley floors blanketed with huge conifers as numerous as the spines on a hedgehogs back and in as many different shades of green as could be named. Snow tipped the points of the mountains, an ominous sign of early frost and the sky glowed a collection of colours that sung of fading heat and warm fires.

In the centre of this idyllic scene the stuff of nightmares dazzled the eye; a dragon egg Brom knew very well fell willingly into unknown and hostile land.

It was the Spine, of that there was no doubt. From what Brom could see, the Ardinial mountain lay just to the east of were the sun was setting, and the egg was falling into the shadow the mountain cast.

'The egg was being sent to me,' Brom stated, opening his eyes to look at his two companions, 'What worries me now, is where the person who was supposed to be carrying it is. I fear the repercussions should the eggs former carrier be captured.'

The dragon frowned, 'Are they not trustworthy, surly you would not entrust the your future as a free nation to someone who's loyalty is in question?'

Brom shook his head, 'Arya's loyalty is as strong as dragon scales, and I do not fear she will break under torture, I fear what will happen when she does not. Arya is a princess and her mother is Queen Islanzadí of the elves. Should she be captured or killed I fear the queen will withdraw her support from the Varden. I need not say that the elves are a major part of the resistances power; without them…I fear many more lives may be lost before this war is over.'

Hermione's eyes flashed and she spat, 'If withdrawing her support means so much, then this queen is a very selfish person.'

Brom looked at the girl in surprise, 'How would you feel if your only child was captured by your enemies?'

Hermione's hand shot up to clutch her stomach and she whispered, 'I would be devastated, but I would not… I could not stand by and watch as others paid the same price. I could not watch them suffer as I was suffering.'

Brom hummed, but said nothing more as he turned back to the map laid out on the table, 'Regardless of what has already happened, we need to find that egg. From what I could see, I would say it fell somewhere in this Valley,' he pointed to the left of one of the larger mountains. 'The region is within two days hike, but I will have to go on my own.' Turning to the little dragon he said, 'From what I can see, your wings will actually grow feathers, something I'm rather puzzled about if I'm honest. Every dragons I know of has had feather like scales for their wings, not actual feathers.'

'What if there was an alternative to walking?' Hermione asked, looking between Brom and the dragon with a twinkle in her eye.

For a second both looked rather confused, but then the dragons eyes lit up and he let out a raw of laughter, 'Brilliant Hermione, you and Brom shall be back in no time, and by being up in the air you will be able to find the egg that much sooner!'

'What do you mean, are you not coming with us?' she asked in confusion.

The dragon scrunched his nose in disgust and replied, 'I am a dragon Hermione, once my wings have fully grown I will soar above the clouds and scare all my enemies with my might. I refuse to fly any other way and depending on a rickety piece of wood to stop me from plummeting to earth does not sound appealing in the least.'

'What in the name of Alagaesia are the two of you on about?' Brom demanded.

Hermione smirked and opening her beaded bag pulled out a shiny black broom.

The dragons eyes widened, 'Where did you get a _Nimbus 2001_ from?'

'Books are not the only things I found in the Malfoy library.'

'Would the two of you please explain what use a broom is?' Brom asked in exasperation.

In answer Hermione held the broom out in front of her and swung her leg over it before willing it to rise about a foot into the air.

'If we fly there we should be done within the day,' Hermione said, laughing at the dumbstruck look on Brom's face.

Slowly lowering herself to the ground Hermione said, 'Before we leave though, I think I'd like a bit of breakfast.'

A happy snort issued from the dragon 'I agree with Hermione, I need to hunt or I think my stomach may start eating itself.'

Brom gave the broom one last sceptical look before making his way over to one of the cupboards, muttering about strange magics and odd dragons as he pulled out some bread and cheese. While Hermione eagerly ate the food offered the dragon turned away declaring, 'I see no need for me to eat such basic food when I can go catch a rabbit. I shall see you when you return from your egg hunt.'

So saying, the little dragon slipped out of the hunt and made his way towards the forest.

'Will he be ok?' Hermione asked in worry as she watched the dragon disappear behind the trees from the window.

Brom nodded, 'I am sure he will be fine; dragons are natural hunters, and we shall not be away long, though I wish we had a way to contact him.'

 **Dragons bonded by the Scales of Alliance can communicate over any distance** , a voice suddenly spoke in Hermione's head, causing the witch to jump in fright.

At Broms curious look she explained, 'Apparently we can communicate mentally over any distance.'

'How is that possible if you are not bonded?' Brom asked in confusion.

 **Do not tell him,** the dragon warned, **_Marking_** **each other in different ways is how wild dragons instinctively acknowledge relationships. It's a part of our culture lost to the dragons that formed a Rider paring.**

Hermione frowned, **What do you mean?**

Hermione felt sadness and anger echo through the bond, **As soon as a dragon marks their rider any wild part of them that acknowledges or remembers** ** _Marking_** **is completely snuffed out. A bonded rider dragon cannot be marked or mark another dragon. It is one of the reasons why the dragons were so close to their rider, they were never able to form true bonds with any of their own species so they concentrated wholeheartedly on the one bond they did have. Sometimes dragon and rider bonded so close that they forgot who was who. Many of the dragons never mated or had hatchlings because they were too close to their Rider. Some even fell in love with their rider.**

 **That must have been horribly distressing and confusing for the dragons,** Hermione thought despairingly, **And the humans now that I think about it.**

 **It certainly makes me question whether bringing back the Riders of old is a good idea. Whereas children were ten before they were tested, dragons bonded as soon as they were out of the egg. So much of the Ancestral memories the wild dragons lived by became clouded. All a dragon ever knew was their Rider and if the Rider had a particularly dominant personality the dragon often took on their characteristics and attitudes.**

 **I am surprised the wild dragons didn't get angry when they found out,** Hermione thought in astonishment.

A dark anger washed over her thoughts as the dragon responded, **Oh they were angry, but in the beginning they didn't realize what was happening. When the Riders were first formed, after a dragon hatched for a rider the pair would go off with the dragons parents for the dragon to get to know it's heritage. They spent so much time around their parents, that all gaps in their Ancestral memory were filled through telepathic communication with other dragons. The wild dragons didn't realise they were teaching their young what they should already know. In general young dragons very rarely performed** ** _Markings_** **, a dragon could go hundreds of years without marking another, a very few loners even their whole lives, so the absence of the ability wasn't noted in much later.**

 **In fact, when the wild dragons started noticing the differences, it was that the Rider dragons were far less aggressive and primal than their wild counterparts. Dragons of both gender would fight both mentally and physically over the right to** ** _Mark_** **each other. Wild dragons chose their mate, not only for their intellectual compatibility, but because of whom that particular dragon had ties too through their** ** _Marks_** **. If a dragon had to choose between two potential mates and liked them both equally, the dragon would choose the one with the most impressive** ** _Marks_** **. Because the Rider dragons were unable to perform any kind of Marking and they didn't want to fight unless it was for the protection of the land they hardly ever mated with wild dragons. Over time as the demands on the riders grew the rider dragon hatchlings spent less and less time with the wild dragons and the problems came to light.**

 **What a mess…** Hermione mumbled.

The dragon agreed grimly, **The worst part is because the connection dragons shared with their riders was so profound and overwhelming, they didn't see the need for anything more. With their dragons happy to go on as they had, the riders didn't care. That's when the wild dragons started to refuse to give up their eggs. In the last two hundred or so years before Galbatorix came into the picture, the numbers of riders declined rapidly. The wild dragons would lie about how many eggs they had hatched, hiding them away so the riders couldn't have them amd the rider dragons had so few eggs anyway -**

Hermione was jolted back to herself when Brom shook her hand rather vigorously, 'Oh sorry,' she said, 'did you say something?'

Brom was looking at her curiously, 'I've been talking to you for a while; you just haven't been answering me.'

Hermione smiled sheepishly, 'I'm sorry Brom, suffice to say, communication shall not be a problem between us.'

Brom looked close to asking another question, but when Hermione shook her head he thankfully gave in and went to pack some provisions.

Not long after, the unlikely pair set off in the direction of the Spine. Brom worried about being seen by anyone in the forest but his fears were put to rest when Hermione cast a disillusionment spell on them. He was also unsteady for a while, but when he got used to the sensation of flying with only a stick between his legs instead of a scaly dragon he started to enjoy himself immensely, having not flown in years.

It took less than two hours for the pair to find the landing site, but they were dismayed to discover that the blue egg was nowhere to be seen. As Brom examined the land around the site, he discovered an arrow imbedded in a tree and soon found human footprints half covered in snow.

' **Someone took the egg?** ' Hermione asked, both in her mind and out loud to Brom as she spotted what the man was looking at.

'It would appear so; we'll have to go on foot now. I can't track the footprints from the air. Be careful where you step and watch your surroundings, you don't know what lurks in these woods.' With that Brom took off into the trees, carefully examining the path of the person they thought had the egg.

A feeling of worry vibrated through her connection to the dragon, and he said, **Look at the track Hermione.**

Looking down at the tracks, Hermione allowed the Dragon to see through her eyes, **They are quite fresh, less than a day old from what I see. Whoever made them is of average height, and quite used to this type of terrain, they move quickly and with a purpose. They picked the egg up and put it down a few times, they may not know what they carry, but they** ** _are_** **taking it with them.**

 **You can tell all that from the tracks?** Hermione asked in astonishment.

 **It's all about the depth of the footprint, how far it is between the tracks, what foliage has had time to settle on it, that sort of thing. Pick up some of the dirt and put it to your nose, see if you can sent them.**

 **Hey, I'm not a dog you know!** Hermione exclaimed, brow furrowing in slight disgust.

 **No, you're not a dog but you are part dragon, which means you should have dragons senses. If I am wrong you should simply smell wet dirt, but if I am right you should be able to smell something about this person. Remember these people are still living in the middle ages. While a high amount of ambient magic makes them live longer, cleanliness is not a high priority so they should smell, especially if this person has been in the woods for days.**

With a high amount of scepticism Hermione bent down and picked up a good amount of dirt that had been trodden on and put it to her nose. A multitude of smells shot up her nose, caressing her sinuses and making the world explode as her brain connected smells with things. A family of squirls, a wolf, blood from a rabbit, excrement of some type of rat (she almost dropped the dirt at that one, before she realised it was more than a year old), fresh water, rotting leaves and wood; even what her brain told her were snail eggs ready to hatch, which she wasn't sure was more or less disturbing than the rat droppings. Almost overpowering all of those though, was the smell of human sweat and leather.

 **It's a he,** came the dragons voice over the bond as the different smells made their way to him, **He's young, possibly in the second or third year of puberty. He almost defiantly from one of the villages in the Spine, his scent is too clean for him to have been here for more than three days, four at the most.**

 **What do you want to do?**

 **Keep tracking him, there's little else we can do.**

As the sunset dragon silently made his way through the undergrowth of the forest, he observed the village of Carvahall like a soldier would the enemy. Though Carvahall was small, it was one of the few places in Alagaesia where Dragon Tails still grew. An odd vine like plant, it sprouted with the changing of the leaves and grew wildly in the dead of winter, coming into full bloom as the spring lambs were born and drying out by the summer solstice. It was the collecting of these crumbling flowers and it's grinding into a silvery dust that kept the small village alive and able to support both a butchers shop and a blacksmith, though only just; however before long, even that would be a hardship. The villagers, and indeed most of Alagaesia had forgotten its many uses, it was now used only as an ingredient in healing tonics, and not a widley used one at that. Whoever kept buying the dust must be a curious individual, for there was only one buyer of the dust. When the Traders roled into town each year, one of them bought up all the whole crops worth of dust. He then sold it on to a mysterious customer that refused to identify himself.

At one time the plant had grown all over the continent, but gradually it had died out, now only growing here and according to some rumours the dragon had heard in the minds of the villagers, somewhere in the Beor Mountains.

No one knew, but the absence of dragons in the land was responsible for the flowers scarcity. It grew only where dragons were nesting, their ambient magic seeping into the earth and changing the plant into what was now before him. These plants hardly held any ambient magic, only clinging onto their supernatural properties because Carvahall valley had once been the nesting ground for many large clans of dragons.

The dilemma the dragon now faced, was whether to steel the seeds of this almost unremarkable plant to which the dragons owed so much, there by killing off a village within days when it could still cling to life for another hundred years or so.

Shaking his head in indecision, the dragon slinked away from the edge of the forest, making his way further from the village. He need not decide now, the seedpods would not start opening for weeks yet. So he could afford to think this through for a little while longer.

According to Hermione, she and Brom were starting back to Carvahall, having lost the trail of the boy with the egg in a sudden flurry of rain and snow that morning. It was frustrating, and made their self appointed task of finding the egg all the harder, but from the direction the tracks had been going, the egg carrier had been making his way to either Therinsford or Carvahall. If the first, then they would be leaving soon, if the second, then all he needed to do was wait in his current position to see if the little busybody would immerge from the Spine.

It took hours for even the smallest movement to be perceivable, even to a dragons eye, but when he eventually glimpsed a slip of a boy through the trees a few miles away, he knew his mission to retrieve the egg had just gotten ten times harder; Eragon. The boy was carrying the egg, and to make matters worse, he could feel the little she dragons mind singing with joy at having found her rider, he could not allow that to happen. With a final frustrated glance at the boys slow progress, he took to washing the feathers just starting to grow into his wings, licking a spiked tongue over them.

When the boy made it to the edge of the valley in which Carvahall lay, the dragon had finished his evening wash and was able to watch as the boy made his way to the village. He almost choked when the idiot offered the egg to the butcher as payment for some meat, and sighed in relief when his deal was turned down.

By the time the boy had trekked the ten miles from the village to his home, Brom and Hermione were just coming over the last rise to the edge of the forest.

 **Hermione,** the dragon called, **I need you to do something for me, and I need you to do it without Brom knowing.**

 **What do you want me to do?**

 **I need you to go into the village and erase the a memory from three of it's inhabitants,** he replied, still growling under his breath at the boys stupidity, though he supposed the boy had no clue what the egg actually was.

The little dragon could feel the shock emanating from his friend as she asked, **What exactly am I erasing?**

The dragon gave another growl, **Start with the butcher, look at his memories from four or so hours ago, you'll know it when you see it.**

The dragon could feel his friends' frustration at him, but even after some prodding on her part, he wouldn't tell her what was going on. He watched dispassionately as Hermione told Brom that she was going to find him and made her way out of the house and disillusion herself before sneaking into the night.

Her shock at what she found in Sloan's mind was like a ship being attacked by an angry sea monster, such was her fury as she wrapped her mind round his and demanded to know why he thought he had a right to keep this from her.

 **Because of this very reaction Hermione,** he shouted back in one of her infrequent pauses, **Brom's only child has the egg. If I had told you what was happening in his presence, he would have never let you leave to do what was needed. Not only that, the she dragon has found her rider, she's going to hatch for him if I don't do something soon.**

Hermione's fury stilled as his words registered in her mind, **What do you mean, if you don't do something about it?**

 **Exactly what I said Hermione, you remember what I told you about the rider bond. I refuse to let that happen to one of the only remaining dragons in quite possibly the whole world. Not to mention that she is the only known female.**

Hermione's resignation and support of whatever he wished to do echoed along the bond and with one last nod he said, **Good, now I once you have dealt with Horst and Katrina, I need you to do one last thing for me…**

 **Wake up… wake up… WAKE UP HUMAN!** With a shout Eragon sat bolt upright in his bed, turning this way and that as he tried to find the source of the voice.

 **Looking for me will do you no good child,** came the voice again, deep and calm where a moment ago it had been fraught with frustration. It was then that Eragon realized the voice spoke from _inside_ his head.

'Who are you?' he asked into the darkness, ignoring the voice's advice and looking this way and that for it's speaker.

 **Do not worry so child,** whispered the voice, **I mean you no harm, but you have something of mine. I simply want it back.**

Eragons eyes flickered to where he knew the blue stone lay under his bed.

A deep chuckle seemed to echo through his head and the voice spoke again; this time deep amusement colouring his tone, **Yes, it is the stone I speak of. Someone was trying to send it to an acquaintance of mine, but they failed, I am here to retrieve it.**

'How do I know you're telling the truth?' Eragon asked with trepidation.

More amusement not his own echoed through Eragon's head, **You don't,** said the voice simply **, But you have little choice but to trust me. I am allowing you to give the stone up freely and find out exactly what you found out there as a reward for finding it and bringing it back. If you don't give it to me however, I will simply take it for myself and erase all knowledge of it from your mind.**

'You can't do that!' Eragon whispered, truly frightened as he dived under the bed and grasped the stone, holding it tight as he looked about the room for an escape from the voice.

 **Child, please listen to what I am saying, I will not do anything to you if you do as I say, and no matter what happens, I will not hurt you or your family in any way,** said the voice calmly, only a hint of frustration tingeing it's voice.

Eragon brought his breathing under control and asked, 'What do you want me to do?'

 **Take the stone to the fairy ring in the forest beside your house, I will wait for you there.**

'How do I know you're not just trying to make me leave the house?'

There was no hiding the voice's irritation as it replied, **I am in your head child, do you think a simple door would stop me if I wished you harm? Though I really am starting to think it may not be such a bad idea, you are a very annoying child.**

The last part was almost a grumble, and it was that more than anything that reassured Eragon of the voices honesty, **You said the fairy ring in the woods?'** he asked.

 **Yes,** was the only reply he got as an almost sleepy fog Eragon hadn't realised was there lifted from his mind, allowing him to think far more clearly than before. With cautious movements he rose from the floor with the stone in his hand and silently made his way down the stairs. Taking his bow and quiver from where they hung on the wall, Eragon made his way out of the house and into the forest. After climbing the rock face for about twenty minuets, he found himself at his destination, a rugged outcropping of rock where a huge circle of twelve standing stones, most twice the size of Eragon, surrounded a large deep crater in the ground.

Eragon walked between the stones and stood at the edge of the crater, looking down into the darkness, 'Well I'm here!' he called, not sure if he should expect a reply.

Movement from behind him made Eragon spin to see a dark hooded figure sprinkling what looked like tiny silvery pebbles on the ground. A moment later Eragon realized the pebbles encircled the whole of the fairy ring, as they all started to glow a bright white.

Terrified, Eragon twisted around another of the standing stones and made to leave the fairy ring, only to find his way barred by a wall of silvery light that was quickly forming a dome over the entire circle.

Turning back to the hooded figure he demanded, 'Let me out! Here,' he shouted, throwing the stone at the hooded figure, who caught it deftly but said nothing, 'take it. You said you wouldn't harm me or my family, now let me go!' He pounded frantically at the barrier, which felt almost like liquid under his hands.

He was startled from his pounding by the voice he had heard in his head echoed from above him, 'And I have kept my word child, neither you or your family have been harmed. Do you not want to see what it is you carried for two days through the Spine?'

Head shooting up, Eragon's eyes widened in fascination as he beheld the scaled body of a dragon, perched atop one of the standing stones, it's tail curling round the stone in order to hold it in place. In confusion Eragon's brow scrunched in confusion, 'If you're the one that was talking to me, then who...?' he turned to the figure holding the stone, who lowered their cloak to reveal one of the most ethereal and beautiful beings Eragon had ever seen.

The woman grinned as he took in her scaled face and almost luminescent green eyes, 'It's rude to stare you know,' she said, laughter threading through her voice as nimbly jumped into the crater and skidded to the centre.

'She is quite amazing isn't she?' the dragon asked, causing Eragon to spin back and look at him in wonder.

'What is she?'

'What she is does not have a name,' was all the answer he gave before jumping into the crater himself and slinking up beside the woman.

Eragon watched in curiosity as the woman placed the stone in the centre of the crater, before running up the side and coming to stand beside Eragon with a smile. Gazing at the dragon curling round the stone in the crater, Eragon suddenly realized what he was seeing, 'It's a dragon egg,' he whispered in awe, worr that he had somehow harmed the being inside coming to the forefront of his mind.

The woman beside him nodded, looking almost as exited as Eragon as she answered, 'Yes, and it's about to hatch.'

Eragon turned back to the centre, about to ask another question when a high, drawn out keening sound emitted from the dragons mouth as he circled the egg, wrapping his tail around it with another, deeper note. As the sounds of the dragon started to echo round the shielded space, they overlapped and bent until a tune started form. Not long after, the egg started to glow and the song started to take on a life of it's own, notes of sound the dragon had not uttered coming to life and dancing with his own. The glow of the egg grew so bright and the sound so loud that both Eragon and the woman had to cover their ears and close their eyes.

In the next second however, the song, for that was what it now was, started to recede; the light started to fade, all converging, being pulled into the centre until once again darkness and quiet ruled the night.

Eragon had barely opened his eyes when it happened, the sound of a loud crack as the she dragon from within the egg hatched, and an explosion of light, sound and magic cleaved the very air in two.

Please keep reviewing!, I love you all!


	4. The Name

Updated: 12/07/15 (It is now 1:00, I have to be up at 6:00 for work)

Chapter 4

The Name

The first thing Hermione heard as she awoke was the sound of humming to her left. With a groan, she put her hand to her head and rolled to the side, opening her eyes only slightly to see the early morning sky just as it had been when she passed out. At first, her blurry eyes didn't know what they were seeing; a large fluffy ball of moving colour dominated her view. 'How long was I out?' she groaned.

 **Not long, a few minuets at the most,** was the rather absentminded sounding reply.

Nodding again, Hermione's eyes widened as they moved back over the blur slowly coming into focus, lots of colours breaking into huge individually coloured feathers, even the smallest of them longer than her forearm. A long slender head of scales rose out of the feathered mass, coming closer and closer until a large scaled snout touched her forehead. It was only then that Hermione realized how truly large her friend now was. The dragon before her was almost quadruple the size he had been seconds ago and a sporting a rather impressive set of horns. Starting with two larger spikes where the horns met his skull, they grew away from the back of his head and split in two about half way up, a long line of gagged spikes running along the upper edge. As the dragon moved further away Hermione could see a long line of spikes now trailed from his forehead down his spine, forming a dragon style Mohican. Scales under his chin had formed an almost goatee like effect, large spines along the top of his eye socket formed rather fierce looking eyebrows and lead down the sides of his nose to a thorn like scale at the tip of his snout. The overall look had the effect of changing the cute, small cat sized dragon into a fully matured, battle ready adult.

The dragon gave a toothy grin, **So what do you think?** he asked with a lift of a newly spiky eyebrow.

Hermione let her breath out in one big whoosh as she answered, 'Well you're certainly not sitting in my lap any more.'

The dragon let out another chuckle as Hermione surveyed the crater, noting that the boy was breathing easily and did not appear to have any injuries, 'What was that? What happened? How did we survive that explosion? How-'

 **That Hermione,** the dragon interrupted before she could work herself into a frenzy, **was the reason we needed to cast the protection circle of Dragon Tail seeds. Whilst in the egg, a Hatchling absorbs all the ambient magic in it's surroundings, which governs the strength of a dragons heart of hearts. The shock of birth causes the hatchling to loose control of the magic and it is released back into the world, leaving the heat of hearts empty for the dragon's own magic to fill it.**

Hermione frowned, 'Why didn't your magic explode? Has it got something to do with your growth spurt?'

The dragon shrugged, **It was my own power that filled my heart of hearts when I hatched, nature had no right to my magic. As for my growth spurt, I, along with both you and the boy absorbed some of the magic released. While your core has most likely grown and the boy now has the ability to use magic in the Ancient Language, I was able to channel what I absorbed into accelerating my growth.** The dragon shuddered, **I went through puberty once, I have no intention of doing so again as a dragon. The mood swings were awful as a human, as a dragon it's even more intense.**

Shaking herself, Hermione looked around the crater again and noticed that the seeds she had used to draw a circle around the stones were still glowing, illuminating the surrounding area far more than even the early morning sun in the sky. Getting to her feet Hermione turned to the dragon accusingly, 'People will see this light for miles around! Why didn't you move them? We may as well role out the welcome mat to this mad king everyone raves and curses about while we're at it! We'll be having tea and scones and asking each other absurd thing like _'Why is a raven like a writing desk?'_ '

 **Peace Hermione,** interrupted the dragon in a calm voice, though after knowing Harry for seven years the dragon girl could easily detect the amusement in her old, new friends voice, **Dragons Tail is a magical plant. When it is in seed form it can absorb a tremendous amount of energy. Cast in a circle as you did they shield the area within the circle from the notice of others and absorbs the magic given off by the hatchling. No one but those within the circle when the seeds absorbed the energy can see the light. No one outside of the circle can see or sense us. Wild dragons have been using the seeds for millennia to hide their hatching grounds.**

 **Incidentally, you'll need to collect the seeds; a single one is now charged with enough energy to power all of Earth's cities for a year. In the wrong hands, they're an almost unlimited power source. We should procure some diamonds somehow, and transfer the energy soon, or the seeds will start to become unstable and exploded if bumped.**

Hermione frowned, 'Unstable like a nuclear bomb?'

The dragon nodded, a grim look overtaking his face, **During Du Fyrn Skulblaka, the dragons used the seeds like bombs on the elven cities.**

With wide eyes Hermione scrabbled to her feet and climbed up the side of the crater, reaching down and gingerly picking one of the seeds up, 'They are stable now though right?' she asked, looking at the seed almost fearfully.

With a toothy grin, the dragon nodded, 'If you put them in an unbreakable jar and cast a suspension charm on them so they don't touch the sides or each other, they should be fine for a few years.

Hermione nodded, carefully summoning the seeds and putting them into a jar before putting the lid on and spelling it unbreakable.

When the last of the seeds had been put in the jar, Hermione turned to the dragon, only for him to say, **Now that the seeds protection is gone, it may be prudent to erect some wards.**

Hermione's eyes widened, and spinning she quickly went about erecting the wards that had become so familiar to her, hiding them as she had done so many times over the course of the passed year. So intent was she upon completing her task that she almost forgot the reason they were in the crater in the first place.

Upon finishing the wards, she looked to her friend only to realize that he had curled into a ball once more and had once again ducked his head into his wings. Eyes widening in understanding, Hermione rushed forward and using a rather surprising amount of strength, pushed the dragons silky new wings aside before gaping down at the sight before her.

Like a water in the sun, scales in every shade of blue, purple and green glistened in the light and reflected a dazzling show of colour over the inside of the sunset dragons new wings.

'Oh,' was all Hermione could say as large cobalt eyes blinked up at her, each being surveying the other in wonder. With slow movements, Hermione sat cross-legged on the ground and slowly extended her hand. With a reassuring look from her feathery elder, the dragon youngling slowly moved forward and with a loud exhale touched her snout to the tips of Hermione's fingers before taking a small sniff. Seconds later an exited squealing sound emerged from her small throat and the tiny she dragon darted forward. Curling her tail around the girls arm, she draped the rest of her body across Hermione's shoulders, cobalt eyes turning to meet those of her new human perch as if to welcome praise for her great feat.

Looking back to her friend Hermione said, 'You know, we're going to have to give you a name. It was easy to refer to you as the dragon when you were the only one, but now there's two dragons, it'll get to confusing.'

The sunset dragon curled round Hermione, allowing her to rest her back against his side as the hatchling playfully nipped at the girls fingers.

 **Wild dragon's never really had names,** the elder dragon said quietly, before shooting forward and clamping his jaws firmly but gently round the body of the smaller dragon to lift her off Hermione's shoulders, stopping the youngling from biting the top off the dragon girl's ears. **Think of the two of us. Our minds are so intertwined we need no names to know who the other is, I call you Hermione out of habit. A custom left over from my time as Harry. In the past the two legs gave the dragons names because they spoke aloud; it became a tradition for the Rider to present names to their dragons for them to choose one. If a wild dragon planned to spend a lot of time with the two legs, he or she would choose a name to use.** With an amused snort he continued, **Often the wild dragons would change their names for each visit and respond only to their current favorite. It was rather funny how confused and frustrated the two legs became by the practice…**

Hermione huffed, trying to hold back an amused smile as she said, **That was a rather mean thing to do…**

The dragon rolled his eyes, **It is neither here nor there whether it is kind, it is our way, the two legs shall have to live with it.** At Hermione's annoyed huff and pointed look, the dragon said, **If it means so much to you that I have a name then why don't you come up with one. You are the closest I will ever come to having a rider, so name me.**

Hermione looked at her friend then, and her eyes, for only the second time in all their friendship, flicked up to look at the patch of tiny scales that now represented the scar, which for so long had bound his life. Leaning forward, she gently touched the lightning bolt with her fingers, **Did you know that your scar was a rune?**

The dragon's eyes widened, **It is? Why did no one tell me?**

 **I don't think anyone thought to,** Hermione replied, still tracing the tiny scales with her finger, **We had so much else to accomplish, something like the shape of your scar was rather insignificant.**

 **What does it mean?** The dragon asked quietly.

 **Hermione smiled, a sad sort of happiness radiating from her as she said, It means light, it means the sun. It represents triumphing over the dark, it has a devastating power that nothing can stop. It resists death and destruction and symbolizes the coming together of two souls. It is of the air we breath, the spirit of life in all it's beauty,** tears fell from Hermione's eyes, rolling down her cheeks as she gazed at her friend, **Rather apt for you, don't you think?**

The dragon nodded, 'What is it's name?' he whispered.

Hermione smiled, leaning forward to press a kiss to the scales, **'Sowilo,'** she whispered, both in her mind and out loud.

Neither could have predicted the outcome of such an action; the scales of the scar started to change, lines appearing on their shiny surface and then segmenting, becoming more and more like feathers. The change did not stop at the scar however; ripples of energy shuddered along the dragons hide, scales turning to feathers rapidly as snout turned to beak, front legs grew inward and tail segmented into feathers.

Hermione backed away as the changes occurred, terrified that she had done something terrible to her friend. At the agonizing sounds coming from her elder, the new dragon tried to rush forward to help, but Hermione grabbed the being to her chest as she moved to wiz passed.

As the changes continued, the dragon seemed to grow smaller and smaller, until with one final shudder, the being in front of them had very little in common with a dragon. Brown feathers covered the child sized body from tip to tail, large talons gripped the ground beneath and a deadly beak with streaks of yellow clicked in agitation.

'You're a, a golden eagle!' Hermione exclaimed in incomprehension, looking the bird over before spotting the telltale discoloured feathers that was her friend's ever-present scar and green eyes.

 **Hermione!** Came the bewildered and terrified cry of her friend, causing the girl to loosen her grip on the little dragon, who promptly jumped from her arms to tackle the eagle, who was still three times her size, squeaking her worry for all to hear.

After trying unsuccessfully to calm the little dragon, the eagle finally lost all patience and squawked at her while shouting, **Quite!**

When the little dragon had calmed, the eagle turned to look at his friend, only to see her looking at him with a very contemplative expression.

 **Can you explain this?** He asked.

Hermione frowned, 'Give me a moment,' she said, putting her beaded bag on the floor and rummaging through it for a moment. With a triumphant 'Ahh ha,' she said pulling from the bag an old book bound in deep blue leather. Opening it to a page marked by a silver ribbon, she silently began to read, oblivious to the mounting tension in her friend.

 **Well?** he demanded after some minuets, only for Hermione to look up, a startled and then rather guilty expression flashing across her face.

 **Sorry,** she apologized, sitting cross-legged on the floor and showing the books page to her friend.

 **Animagus?** he asked in confusion after reading the title.

Hermione nodded, excitement overtaking her features as she explained, **To become an animagus takes a lot of training. Meditation is a mandatory part of finding your inner animal, but not in the way most people think. Most think that becoming an animagus is all about finding your inner animal, but their wrong, it's all about finding _the word_!**

The eagle just stared at her, and Hermione got the feeling that he would start tapping his foot and rolling his eyes any second. Trying to keep her amusement at such a thought from splitting her face in a grin, she continued, **The word is what activates the spell. Once the witch or wizard has discovered the word, all he or she needs to do in order to change into their animal form and back again is to say or think the word.**

The eagles eyes widened, and within the next second, the sunset dragon once again stood before her. The hatchling squealed at the return of her elder, and celebrated by jumping on his back and pulling at his wing feathers with her teeth.

So distracted was the dragon that he hardly noticed the hatchlings newest amusement, 'Hermione,' he whispered, 'I think, I think this activation word you are talking about, I think it is my true name.'

'True name?' Hermione asked in confusion

Just then, the larger dragon noticed the little hatchling on his back; with a rumbling laugh his head shot round and as he had before, clamped his jaws round her body, picking her up and depositing her on the ground. Giving her a stern look, she gave a squeak of excitement and took off to inspect the rest of the crater.

Turning back to his friend, he explained, **Long, long ago, before the elves came to these shores, magic was wilder than any dragon's and far more devastating. It was controlled by thoughts, emotions, and even a single stray thought could end in disaster, in fact it nearly did. The Grey Folk, the very first two legs, who used to inhabit these lands at the time, gathered every being they possibly could and tied their magic to the Ancient language. The dragons did not agree to this, they had never had any problems with their magic acting against their wishes when it decided to make itself known and so we do not need it. Everything was given a name, from the largest dragon to the smallest speck of grain. Each act of magic was linked to a specific word and that word became the true name. It described everything that made the being what it was. Knowing the true name for something in the Ancient Language, gives you absolute power over that object or being.**

Hermione's eyes widened, and a look of understanding crossed her face as her quick mind made all the connections the dragon was implying, 'So therefore stands to reason,' she said in an exited voice, pacing this way and that as she talked, 'that in the wizarding world, when searching your soul for a word which will turn you into your base form, what you're actually discovering is your true name. After all, wizards say what you are in animal form is a reflection of your human self and that the activation word for the animagus form is incredibly personal.'

Hermione was practically vibrating at her discovery by the end of her explanation. But after a moment she frowned and turned back to her friend, 'I thought you said that knowing a true name gives you absolute power over the being or thing?'

The dragon smiled at his friend, **It does,** he confirmed, **When a being discovers his or her true name they guard it jealously, lest others use it to control them.**

Tears brimmed in Hermione's eyes, **I am so sorry, I never meant to-**

 **Stop Hermione** , said the dragon with a gentle voice, **I trust you with everything I am, why would your knowledge of my true name change that?**

'Oh God,' Hermione whispered, rushing forward to envelope her friend in a scaly hug, 'Sometimes you are so selfless it completely knocks me off my feet.'

The dragon laughed once more, as he whispered, 'Look who's talking Hermione Granger.'

With a final squeeze, Hermione backed away and looked at her friends face, 'Well then, we still have the problem of finding you a name. Since you wasted a perfectly good one that we can't use for fear of people controlling you, we have to come up with another.'

The dragon shook himself out and settled back to the ground, **I'm all ears my friend,** he said, doing his best to look the picture of interested dragon.

Hermione huffed, a small smile curling her lips as she stared back at him in contemplation. After a moment, she said clearly, 'Othin, it means 'god of the sky' in Norwegian.

 **Othin?** The dragon questioned, turning it over in his head, 'I like it.'

Hermione smiled, 'You understand that you can't change it? I'm not going round letting you call yourself whatever strikes your fancy.'

The dragons rumbling laugh came once again filled the air, 'You and I do not need names my friend, but for _you_ and _you alone_ I will always be Othin.'

Hermione laughed, 'God help the two legs, you're going to confuse the hell out of them.'

 **Here's to hoping!** Othin replied, causing his friend to burst into laughter once more.

'We still have to come up with a name for the hatchling,' she said when she had once again calmed down.

'I think, we should allow her to choose her own name when she wishes it. Now that I have a name we can easily call her Dragon, or Little One, or Hatchling.'

As if summoned by their talking of her, (which considering dragons mental abilities she probably was) the tiny cat sized dragon once again made her existence known by jumping on Othin's head from where she had climbed onto one of the standing stones; much to the amusement of Hermione, and the consternation of Othin.

 **We really need to come up with some ground rules** , the elder dragon grumbled at the being still perched happily on his nose.

Eragon was no stranger to dreams of adventure and dragons; he was boy on the cusp of adulthood, living ten miles from the nearest civilization, boredom did not come close to describing what he felt most days. With no change to his life in sight, finding the mysterious blue stone in the Spine had been the highlight of his month. Now however, he was beginning to wonder if it might not have been better to leave the stone where it lay. His mind was running so wild he was imagining all sorts of inconceivable things.

Finding out your brother in all but blood was leaving, hoping to create his own life somewhere… wondering how they were going to get through the winter when he had been unable to catch anything in the Spine…and now today was the anniversary of his mother's return to Carvahall. He was just stressed, that's all.

He had not followed the instructions of a voice in his head into the woods The stone he had found in the Spine was not an egg, there was no such thing as a dragon people, and he had not just watched aforementioned egg hatch. And last but certainly not least, dragons had not returned to Alagaesia.

With his mind thus settled, he decided now was a good a time as any to rise and face the day and turned his attention to getting his body to move. It was only then that he registered how uncomfortable and _cold_ he was. Holey dragons balls, it was like he had been sleeping in snow. With a shaking hand, he felt for his blanket, frowning when his hand only met…dirt?

Shifting slightly, Eragon realized it was not a bed of sack cloth and straw beneath him, but earth and stones digging into his side. Eyes opening, he found himself lying beneath an open sky as clouds lazily passed overhead.

It was then that he heard the rumbling laughter behind him, and the sound of something _big_ moving towards him. Turning, he found himself face to face with a brightly coloured scaled head.

'I must say, as amusing as your thoughts are little human, I must regrettably tell you that you did follow a voice inside your head into the woods and that _was_ an egg you found. Hermione _is_ the only one of her kind that I know of, but _she_ is very real and therefore does exist. The dragon egg did hatch and as evidenced by said hatching as well my own presence, dragons have returned to Alageasia.'

Eragon just stared at the dragon stood rather intimidatingly in front of him. He suspected that if he were to stand the dragons shoulders would not be too far below his own, but it's long elegant neck made the dragon almost tower over him. 'Weren't you… smaller?' he whispered, hoping not to offend the being he feared may rip his throat out at any moment.

The dragon's lips pulled back, exposing an impressive set of teeth in a terrifying parody of a grin, 'Yes, I was.' The dragon replied, seeming content with that answer as it continued to look Eragon over.

Eragon felt behind him and started to slowly shift himself backward, only for the dragon to follow with slow measured steps that crushed the ground beneath, 'You're not going to kill me, are you?'

The dragon's grin widened, making him look more predatory, 'That really depends…' he trailed off.

Eragon gulped, about to ask what exactly it depended on, but before he could get even the first word out he felt an explosion of pain streak through his head. Suddenly memories from all throughout his life were flashing through his head; everything from his opinion about the empire and the Varden to how he felt whilst working in the field and hunting. Faster and faster the memories and feelings came, until his mind was a blur and he could not form any thought for himself.

Then, as suddenly as the onslaught began, it ended. Slumping down to the ground with a groan, Eragon allowed his breath to escape him with a hiss, only to suck it back in when he opened his eyes to find the dragon with teeth bared, once again inches from his face.

'I see that you are like the elves of old, who considered my kind little more than beasts. If you do not wish for me to rip out your throat human, _that_ kind of thinking will have to change.'

Eragon's eyes widened, and he nodded frantically; but being the opinionated youth that he was, could not help but say, 'It's not like I've ever seen a dragon before, how should I know what a dragon is like? All I've heard are the stories from Brom, and he never mentioned any of them could talk!'

The dragons upper lip curled, 'That is so like you two legs, if it does not have skin and speak your language it is obviously a dull unintelligent animal. It does not matter if you are elf or human, you all think the same. But whom I ask is the real beast? While we hunt for food, crunch every bone and eat every scrap of meat, you hunt for amusement. The first two legs to kill a dragon did so with no intention of eating her, only to wear the she dragons scales as a garment, he thought them pretty, he left the rest of her body to rot in the sun, a waist of a life.'

Eragon knew not how to respond to such a statement, and he was spared answering when someone asked from behind the dragon, 'What are we going to do with him?'

The dragon gave one final disgruntled huff before turning away and saying, 'What am I supposed to do with him Hermione? The boy is more immature than the hatchling in your lap. He has so little idea of what the world is truly like, he dreams of glory and being special, as if those things are all that define a person. I truly do question why the hatchling wanted him as her rider.'

At the word rider, Eragons face, which had previously been reddening with indignation at the dragon's insults, quickly turned to one of astonishment and excitement.

Laughing, he launched himself to his feet and quickly circling round the dragon, got his first look at the she dragon curled up in the dragon girls lap. With a shout he made his way forward, intending to scoop his new dragon into his arms. But before he had even taken two steps, his way was once again bared, this time by a dragon so furious, that stones and pebbles started to lift from ground as his magic lashed out, **'Self entitled fool!'** The dragon raged, the insult ringing in both Eragons ears and his head, **'Do you think that I would consent to a delusional boy such as yourself having any kind of power or influence over a dragon? Your dreams for fame and glory would end in her ruin. Her young mind, twisted until it was so human, only her body would be dragon. No little two legs, you are not a rider, and if this mindless self righteousness continues, you will never be anything close.'**

'Othin stop!' Shouted the dragon girl, quickly getting to her feet and pushing the great being away from the now terrified boy, "Eragon has lived his whole life in this valley, of course he dreams of greater things, he knows nothing of war but stories told about the hero's. You can not blame him for wanting to be seen as an equal to adults, that's all he wants. I remember another young man who wanted the same thing, not to long ago.'

Othin's posture did not change, not even an inch as he replied, 'That my friend is a completely different situation; Harry was not a child asking for a part in adventures he had no place in. He was a man fighting for survival. He needed to be seen as capable by people who only saw him as a child. He did not seek fame or approbation.'

The girl nodded, 'Yes Eragon is naïve, still a child in many ways, but do you think we would be any different if we had lived the whole of our lives in peace? We simply grew out of our childhoods faster.'

'Harry was never a child Hermione,' The mummer was so quiet, Eragon barley heard it, the reply even more so.

'We were all young once, all innocent at one time, even if you can't remember it. It is only the situations in which we do the growing that differ. Give Eragon the chance to grow up in a way that makes him worthy of what he wishes… Be the one who shows him what he can achieve if he puts his mind to it.'

Othin sighed, his eyes turning to the sky with a wistful sort of expression on his face, 'I suppose the hatchling choose him to be her rider. Even if that did not happen in the end, it means there is something in the boy that is worthy of a dragon, though it is certainly buried deeply.'

The girl sighed, coming forward and placing her hand on the dragon, he relaxed and finally stepped away from Eragon, allowing the boy to take his first full breath in minuets.

'I don't want him near the hatchling though,' the dragon said as he backed away, 'She still connected to him in some ways; I worry that if they spend too much time together the bond may reassert itself.'

'Quite frankly I don't think that would be such a bad thing, who the hell do you think you are dragon, to break the bond between a dragon and it's potential rider?'

Everyone turned at the sound of the new and rather angry voice, but it was Eragon who voiced the question almost everyone was thinking, 'Brom, what are you doing here?'

Wow did the Animagus thing take you lot as much by surprise as it did me? I swear the bunnies were VERY busy this chapter!

Reviews please!


	5. The Escape

Published 22/07/15

Chapter 5

The Escape

Brom's eyes were blazing as he stepped into the circle, looking at Othin with utter contempt.

'Do you know… do you have any idea just what you've done?' he whispered, far to enraged to shout, 'Do you know how sacred the bond between dragon and rider is?'

Othin snorted, scaled lips coming back to reveal sharp teeth, 'You heard what I had to say on the subject;' at Brom's surprised look, the dragon growled in amusement, 'Did you think a dragons eyes would not notice you hiding over in the tree's like a scared doe?'

It was Brom's turn to snort, his anger reaching breaking point as he replied, 'Aye, I was in the trees, and I heard right enough, but I don't believe a lick of it! I was a rider for eighteen years and not once did I hear about any of these complications you speak of!'

A gasp from somewhere beside the dragon made Brom turn to spot Eragon, his son, staring at Brom with wonder, and to his shame, a hint of betrayal.

'Of course you heard nothing Rider,' said Othin, his eyes blazing with a hidden triumph at what Brom had just revealed, 'Did you think your precious riders would admit something was wrong to the likes of you, a lowly novice? The problems had been growing more prominent and worsening for years before you were even born. As soon as their own dragons voiced their content with the situation, they saw no reason to peruse the problem further, only surreptitiously make the problem go away. Did you know that the riders had not been given a wild dragon egg in over two hundred years?'

Brom scowled, 'That's not possible, I know of twenty three eggs that were presented to the riders in that time!'

Othin laughed, 'No little rider, you know of twenty three eggs that had been presented to the riders many years ago. When an egg did not hatch after three years of it traveling, it was put aside to allow new two legs to be born. Many dragon eggs over the centuries did not hatch. So, when the wild dragons refused to give any more of their eggs, and the ranks of new riders started to look thin, the elders wove spells over the existing eggs to make them hatch for those they deemed worthy; they brought forth many of the eggs that had not hatched and presented them as new. Such forced bonding could never end well.

Your own dragon Saphira was one of the few eggs that hatched without the extra enchantments. As you grew older Saphira would have encountered all the same problems that the other, older dragons had, but your bond was a result of only the original Rider spells, but many bonds were not. I believe your connection to your she dragon was another reason the truth was kept from you, the elders did not wish to taint your view of the bond you shared. Galbatorix and the Forsworn are examples of how the forced bonds effected the minds of those not meant to be one. The she dragon forcefully bonded to Morzan was a particularly sad circumstance, she was meant to be far more than that.'

Brom's eyes narrowed in hatred at the mention of Morzan's dragon, 'That beast,' he spat, venom in every syllable, 'Should have been put down the second it was free of it's protective shell.'

Othin's eyes widened in shock, but quickly turned to rage as he replied, 'She was one of the strongest dragons to ever live. Her mind withstood every spell the riders used to make the dragons hatch. It took centuries to break her; but as the saying goes, the higher they climb, the harder they fall. When the riders eventually broke her mind and made her hatch, madness consumed her quicker than a dragon can swallow a rabbit. All that was left of her was pain and anger at the riders for doing such a thing to her. When she was forced to bond with the weak minded Morzan, of course her madness consumed him, he didn't stand a chance.'

Brom spluttered, 'You say all this, but you have yet to prove any of it! How can you know anything about this when you were only born a few days ago? I don't know why you are spreading these lies, but I will listen to them no more.' With that, Brom stepped forward and lifted the new hatchling into his arms.

'What do you think you are doing rider?' Othin asked in a low voice.

'I am taking the hatching and Eragon to Du Weldenvarden; the elves may know what to do to fix this mess you've made of the bond.'

'Over my dead body,' and like the young impulsive dragon Brom knew him to be, Othin charged.

Shoving the hatchling behind him, Brom pulled Za'roc from it's sheath and prepared to strike the scaled beast head on. Then, seconds before the sword hit, Othin veered to the side, long neck stretching out to grab the little hatchling in his maw and taking to the sky's. After a second of watching the pair in shock, the sound of movement from behind caused Brom to spin around and spot the dragon girl slowly backing out of the circle. She looked back, saying quickly, 'Eragon can use magic now, I would suggest you teach him how to wield it, or he may hurt himself.'

Brom glanced to Eragon in shock, but his gaze inevitably went back to Hermione as he said, 'That dragon is a liar girl, and you'd do well to stay clear of him.'

Hermione lifted an unimpressed eyebrow as she said, 'That dragon is my best friend, and incapable of lying to me.'

Brom snorted, 'Being a wild dragon's friend isn't an easy task girly; their proud and vain creatures. Because of their ancestral memories they think they know best and they won't hesitate to kill you if crossed.'

The young girl bristled, 'Harry is nothing like that!' she shouted.

'Harry? Who's Harry?' Brom asked with a frown.

The girls eyes widened in fear, and flicking the thing she called a wand into her hand, shot a wave of sky blue light sailing into Brom and Eragon.

The last thing Brom saw was the girl disappearing into the trees.

 **Hermione, when I tell you, run!**

Hermione barley had time to comprehend her friend's statement before Othin was launching himself at Brom. Seconds later the dragon was rocketing away from them with the hatchling in his mouth, screaming **_Run_** **,** into her head.

She was just about to clear the circle of standing stones when she remembered the boy. Turning back, she said quickly, 'Eragon can use magic now, I would suggest you teach him how to wield it, or he may hurt himself.'

The riders eyes flicked for a moment to his son before he said, 'That dragon is a liar girl, and you'd do well to stay clear of him.'

Hermione felt anger rise in her as Brom insulted her friend. Harry hated being lied to, so much so that he was almost incapable of lying himself. Yes he dodged answering her at times, and outright refused to answer at others, but her never lied. Brom was so caught up in his glorious remembering of the past that he had forgotten how flawed people were. 'That dragon is the best person I know, and practically incapable of lying to his friends.'

Brom snorted, 'Being a wild dragon's friend isn't an easy task girly; their proud and vain creatures. Because of their ancestral memories they think they know best and they won't hesitate to kill you if crossed.'

'Harry is nothing like that!' she shouted. Her friend was selfless and hated the way he looked. Yes at times he was proud, but it wasn't part of his core personality. As for knowing best, Harry always deferred to her when he wanted to know something, Brom knew nothing of her friend.

She was knocked from her musings by his gruff voice saying, 'Harry? Who's Harry?' Eyes widening at her mistake, Hermione flicked her wand into her hand, and shot a wave like _Obliviate_ at the two humans still in the crater. She didn't wait to see the results, she'd only erased a few second of their memory; her mention of Harry's name and Brom's response.

Dashing into the trees, there was a push in her head, not unlike being underwater with currents tugging you along. Without even a thought, she started to run. Keeping Othin in her sites, Hermione barley noticed how fast she was running, until the two dragons flying ahead landed on an out cropping of rock some halfway up the side of a mountain. With agility she could hardly understand, Hermione made her way up the near vertical slope, before reaching the two and turning to look out over the valley. Eyes widening, she whispered, 'Where are we?'

All before them was wild, even with her new and improved sight there was not a single hut, house or village, not even a curl of smoke from a campfire. Her mind quickly went through the last few minuets, she saw trees passing by at unimaginable speeds, felt the ground beneath her as if it was hardly there, she had felt almost weightless; How far had she run? How had she not noticed that she was running so fast? She had started to panic when Othin nudged her and said, 'Peace Hermione, please do not worry.'

Hermione shook her head, 'But I can't even remember wanting to go that fast, surly I would notice speeding up to such extremes, I must have been running over a hundred miles an hour? I didn't even know what direction I was going in, I was mostly looking at you, how could I have done that.'

Othin gave a rumbling laugh, 'That is because it was not you running Hermione. I was in control of your body, guiding you through the woods and up the mountain to the two of us.'

Hermione's eyes widened, and a sliver of a thought tried to make itself known, but while Hermione had no mental shields, her mind had always been organised almost to the point of obsession and as such she was able to ruthlessly strangle the thought before Othin could perceive it.

'So you are still protecting my mind?' she asked, feeling rather curious about the mechanics of the idea, 'Does it not get tiring?'

Othin shook his head, 'I hardly feel it now; it is not so much protection as an alarm system at the moment. If you were to be attacked, only then would it become protection and if the attack were strong enough I am sure I would feel the effects.'

Hermione nodded, 'It is imperative then, that I learn to protect my own mind?'

'Yes, though the process will be significantly easier for you, your mind is already organised, all you need is to build walls around it.'

'How do I get inside my head to do that?' Hermione asked with a frown.

Othin smiled, 'It is quite simple, close your eyes and imagine what you need. The clearer you see it in your minds eye the more real the defences become. Start with something simple, like a brick wall or a door, then go from there.'

After his rather vague explanation, Othin turned his attention completely towards the other dragon softly cooing at it and talking of inconsequential things, both with his mind and his head. Hermione, feeling the dismissal as it was ment, took to doing as the dragon had explained, while reading through copious amounts of Occlumency books she had brought with her from the wizarding world.

When the sun had taken the last of it's light below the Horizon and Hermione could see, if not feel the cold creeping into the surrounding wilderness, Othin finally turned his attention back to her. Again he entered her mind, briefly congratulating her on her progress before carefully nudging her control aside once more. Hermione went along with it, though she had little choice in the matter and allowed Othin to lead her further up the side of the mountain to a small opening in the rock. Barely five foot tall, Hermione had to duck down to enter and found herself in a cave which was hardly any bigger. Othin motioned for her to put up her tent, and when she did was surprised that it fit, though the top of the tent was scraping the cave roof.

Turning into an eagle, Othin hopped inside before transforming back and sticking his head outside to pull the wayward hatchling inside. It did not take long before the hatchling was once again curled up asleep in Hermione's arms where she lay on one of the sofa's and hardly any time after that before both were asleep.

And so the days passed, with the pattern of the first repeating itself. Othin would give Hermione some brief direction and she would spend the rest of the day trying to build the most impenetrable and imaginative defences her rather extraordinary mind could come up with. While she was thus occupied, Othin spent his time with the new hatchling. Both dragons doubled in size within days, and they spent many hours finding a new cave to camp in, as the tent could no longer hold Othin without the risk of him ripping the canvas. By the end of a week, the hatchling's eyes were level with Hermione's and Othin's shoulders towered more than a foot above the top of her head. With such dramatic growth, hunting, was their primary occupation; from high in the air they spent hours diving to earth and sinking their talons into various animals, gorging themselves on anything from rabbits to bears.

The hatchling, as she was still referred to, after having rejected every name suggested to her, had yet to speak a single word, communicating only through sounds and feelings projected over the bond. Othin was worried, but Hermione thought it was more out of choice that she didn't speak than inability.

Each night, when all three beings were together and unoccupied, Othin would reach out with his mind and wind it round Hermione's, taking the time to assess the shields she had been working on. It was on the eleventh night of they're stay in the mountains that Othin was first unable to enter Hermione's mind. Previously all he had come up against were shields, one after another like never ending Russian nesting dolls. On the eleventh night however, he came upon something far more… evolved.

It was hours later that his mind re-entered his body, and only then because he conceded defeat, asking his friend to pull back her mind. With his head aching, and his eyes disorientated from what only his mind had seen he whispered, 'What was that?'

'That was an impenetrable mental defence… or so I hope.' Hermione replied, coming to sit with her back to his belly.

Othin closed his eyes and laid his head on the ground, **Surly such a thing is to complex to keep up, a single lapse in concentration and it would all fall apart…**

Hermione shook her head, 'I don't actually have to remember all of it, it's math, all I have to do is repeat one of twelve different formula's, which as a child, I conveniently memorized and would repeat to myself as a calming technique, it stopped me from having outbursts of accidental magic. By the time I entered Hogwarts repeating them in my head was practically a reflex. I wouldn't be surprised if I repeated them in my sleep.'

Othin gave a weak and rather painful sounding laugh, **Only you my friend, could create an impenetrable mental defence out of colours and nothingness.**

Hermione smirked, **Yes well, that's the beauty of this method, there is no way for a person to a attack what isn't there and there is no end to it. If I so wished I could trap someone there forever, interrogate them or destroy their body, whatever suited my purpose.**

 **That is rather ruthless of you,** Othin said, so quietly Hermione hardly even noticed the thought. He turned his head to look at her then, two sets of almost identical green eyes meeting and clashing in a maelstrom of emotions.

'I find it is far easier to look at things with as little emotion as possible at the moment,' looking away from Othin, Hermione turned her head into the warm scales, **In the last few days everything I have ever known has changed, I'm in a different world where my magic has caused me to mutate into this strange… half dragon half human. My home is about as far away as it can possibly be, I have no idea when or if I'll ever see my parents again… and… Ron…And to make matters worse, it will take months to get to the elves.**

Hermione felt a sob rise in her throat as Othin curled around her, cocooning her in warmth, **Oh my friend, I do not wish to burden you further, but I must tell you the truth. Without the Riders help, we cannot reach the elves.**

Hermione stiffened, **What?** Wide eyed, she turned to look back at Othin. 'I thought you went into Brom's head, saw all his memories?'

Othin closed his eyes, **Their location is cloaked. Any who know the elves location can go to them, and they in turn can guide someone they trust to that location as well. However, someone who has never been to the elven city cannot find it.**

'So my only hope of getting to the elves is Brom?' Hermione asked slowly, 'The man you despise for what the Rider's did to dragons? We have to go to him, I have to get home!'

Othin jolted to his feet, angrily pacing back and forth, **'I will not go to him, the Riders betrayed the dragons, warped their minds and made them weak. I will not put the hatchling in that kind of danger, I will not risk her connecting with the young one.'**

'But he is the only one who knows the way to the elves!' Hermione shouted, 'Are you saying you will not help me?'

Othin snarled, 'I am saying there is another way! Remember what the Rider said, an elf was carrying the hatchling's egg. If she was alright then she would have come for it, but she didn't, So she was captured by the Empire, If we can rescue her-'

'Then she can lead us to her people,' Hermione finished with a smile.

Exhaustion austion came over the three beings not long after; and it was only then, when her mind was finally safe from her friends reach that small fragmented thoughts, snippets of memory that had previously been pushed aside and hidden, made themselves known. They formed a cohesive whole that even deep in sleep as she was, caused a frown to form on Hermione's face and her talons to dig into her palms, drawing blood.

Following the fiasco that was the birth of the new dragon, Brom had immediately taken Eragon back to the boys home. He thought to leave the boy there while he went to find the dragons, and told him so, but Eragon it seamed, had had other ideas cooking inside his pea brained head.

Upon entering the house to find both his uncle and cousin at the breakfast table, Eragon had immediately announced that Brom was going out of town for a while and had invited him along as his traveling companion. He had then turned imploring eyes on Brom, and after a moments deliberation, Brom had nodded and confirmed Eragon's claim. If Eragon was with him then boy and dragon would reunite sooner, and there was more chance of them being able to bond, or so he thought.

It had not taken Brom long to convince Garrow of the benefits of Eragon accompanying him. It was the best time for Eragon to go, as there was little to do at the farm until the seasons changed. The boy would get to see a bit more of the world, it would make him a bit wiser and of course he would pay Garrow for the inconvenience of being a hand down. They had haggled then, and Brom had allowed Garrow to win a slightly higher price than was necessary, though not high enough for the farmer's stupid pride to rear it's head and start yapping about charity.

It was agreed that for every month Eragon was away Garrow would be paid two copper pieces, enough to hire another set of hands if necessary. Brom gave the farmer ten coppers then and there, saying that if he was away for less time Brom was trusting Garrow to repay him.

They left but an hour later, stocking up on supplies in Carvahall before following the trail the dragon girl had run. Almost before they were out of earshot of the village, Eragon had been asking, demanding to know all about magic, dragons and riders, in his tone that of an exited child. The Rider was asked everything from how old he really was to whether dragons preferred fish or rabbit. Thinking angrily about what had been taken from Eragon, and secretly thrilling in the attention his son was paying, Brom answered every question without protest.

They had been making reasonably quick progress through the mountains, with Brom using magic to hunt small game, when the snow had started to fall. Now, twelve days after they had first left civilization behind, they were well and truly stuck. Holed up in a cave at the bottom of a cliff with a blizzard raging outside, they had been there for two days. Neither had very much hope that the trail they had been following would be visible come morning. They had enough food to last them a few more days, but then they would have to go hunting, a prospect neither considered achievable with the snow so thick.

So to pass the time Brom had given in to Eragon's rather winey pleas and was teaching him how to properly utilize the new channels for magic he had acquired through the dragon hatchling.

'Rïsa!' Eragon shouted for the seventh time, making the pebble in front of him skip into the air for a second before falling to the ground once again.

'You're doing well,' Brom said with a nod, putting down his pipe to hold out his own hand and intoning 'Rïsa,' quietly and barking a laugh at Eragon's shocked face as all the rocks and pebbles scattered across the cave started to float into the air, 'The key boy, is not to shout as loud as you can, but to focus on what you want.'

All of a sudden, every sound from outside the cave went silent, and the fire seemed to grow hotter, enveloping the in heat. Broms attention immediately shifted to the caves entrance and every rock that floated fell to the floor with a clatter, as if the storm had once again invaded the cave.

From the darkness of the entrance a silvery ghostly form emerged, flying and spinning through the air, circling round them once before flying back to the entrance and merging with a figure now standing there.

'You?' Brom said in astonishment as he took in the person, 'You're the one who lead me to the hatchlings birth place?'

'Yes,' Hermione said, stepping forward and, to Broms utter astonishment, transformed a larger rock into a chair for herself in front of the fire, 'I had my patronus lead you there when we found the egg, I had no idea he would react to your presence in such a way.'

Brom snorted, 'That dragon has no idea what he is nattering about; he was born less than a fortnight ago, yet he speaks with the authority of an elder. He tells tails as long as old father Corks nostril hair and has a vicious streak that's even longer. You tell me he is your best friend and yet you had no idea he would react in such a way? The holes in your story are piling up little miss, and I'm starting to get testy about it.'

The dragon girl narrowed her eyes, baring her fangs as she said, 'My friend would not lie about something so important, but the fact of the matter is your right, I didn't expect him to react so violently. The way he's been acting, I can well imagine he would embellish a story to win my sympathy. He knows how I loathe slavery of any kind, and the way he portrays it, Rider bond seems like just that.'

Brom opened his mouth to argue, but the girl held up her hand to stall him, 'Regardless of who is right or wrong, he said it himself that you had no idea of the problems the dragons of riders faced. _My_ friend would never have blamed you for that, would never have reacted so violently. He would have been more likely to sympathise with you, he hates secrets like I hate slavery, with every fibber of his being. Othin has such a commanding presence, like a king ruling over subject, he expects people to jump please him, and if you question him he forces his views on you. The friend I know is nothing like that! He was a leader, there is no doubt about that, but he would never expect anyone to do anything for him, when he speaks, you want to listen, he inspires hope. My friend is shy and kind and thoughtful, he-'

'Enough! What are you trying to say, speak plainly girl, none of this _'your friend'_ as if the dragon and your friend are not one in the same!' Brom demanded angrily, rising to pace back and forth across the cave.'

'But that's just it, I don't think they are the same!' the girl shouted back, immediately shaking her head and continuing, 'Look, I will admit there are some things I cannot, will not tell you, not until I trust you, but you must understand that I know my friend from the inside out and that dragon nine mountains away is not him!'

Brom looked from Hermione into the fire, 'If that is true, why has it taken you until now to come to us about it?'

Hermione sighed, 'Othin has been the one shielding my thoughts, and as such has had unchallenged access to my mind ever since we arrived here. The doubt that Othin was really my friend started when he asked me to erase the memories of three villagers and became so angry with Eragon simply for acting like the child he is.' Here it was Eragon's turn to try and protest, and Broms turn to wave a halting hand.

With a scolding glance at Eragon Hermione continued, 'My concern only grew stronger from there. Thankfully my mind was so ordered to begin with that it automatically hind things from my conscious thoughts that would have been detrimental to my survival. My mind saw a danger in Othin and protected me by making me seem as loyal as ever. Since we parted ways I have been learning to defend my mind and last night Othin was unable to read my thoughts.

With my mind safe, all my doubts and worries came to the surface. I told Othin and the hatchling that now my thoughts were safe I felt comfortable leaving our camp for a few hours to explore, Othin hardly even glanced at me as he agreed I could go.'

Brom watched as the tears filled the girls eyes, she was truly distraught about her friend, and Brom felt old instincts rear their head as he asked, 'What is it you wish to achieve by coming to us?'

Hermione wiped the tears from her eyes as she said, 'I need you to help me find my friend.'

Brom raised an incredulous eyebrow, 'You think Othin is impersonating your friend? I don't know what you think I can do about it, if Othin was a normal hot headed hatchling I could easily subdue him and make him talk, but that dragon is something I've never seen before. Your best bet is to kill him and find your friend on your own.'

'No!' Hermione shouted, 'You don't understand, Othin is my friend, but I think he's being' Hermione paused, as if searching for the right word, 'I think my friend is being possessed.'

Brom and Eragon's eyes widened, ' Go on…' Brom encouraged.

Hermione sighed, asking in a resigned voice, 'Is there a way to physically and mentally incapacitate a dragon?'

So this is a bit of a in-between chapter, a bit like the 6th harry potter book. It contains information vital for the story to continue but it's not terribly adventure filled. Though my filler is decidedly shorter than Rowlings hundred and sixty thousand odd word Half Blood Prince spiel hehe :)

Reviews...? :)


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